Finding Common Ground

F e a t u r e s

Special Report 9 Departments A financial report from the College’s vice president for finance and treasurer. L e t t e r s 3 By Suzanne Welsh Readers talk back V i s i t o r s 1 2 C o l l e c t i o n 4 P r o f i l e s W e l c o m e Latest news from campus Examine the roots of The Scott Small Virus, 59 Arboretum as it turns 75 years old. Connections 40 B i g I d e a By Ben Yagoda Alumni events and more Harriet Latham Robinson ’59 is a leader in the search for a vaccine. Sowing Seeds 18 ClassNotes 42 By Elizabeth Redden ’05 o f S u c c e s s Classmates staying connected Eric Adler ’86 co-founds an inner- Exciting yet 66 city public charter boarding school. D e a t h s 4 5 H u m b l i n g By Elizabeth Redden ’05 Swarthmore remembers Oncologist David Fisher ’79 confronts clinical and scientific challenges to help F i n d i n g 2 2 Books&Arts 50 young cancer victims. Common Ground Professor of Philosophy By Carol Brévart-Demm Through foreign study, Swarthmore Rich Schuldenfrei reviews educates for the global world. Real Jews by Noah Efron ’82. S i g n s o f 7 5 By Tom Krattenmaker V i o l e n c e I n M y L i f e 7 0 Think Global, 30 You Can Go Home Again: Amy Retsinas ’01 educates teens T e a c h L o c a l A Year in Seoul about healthy relationships and Five faculty members talk about By Kunya Scarborough Des Jardins ’89 conflict resolution. bringing the world into their classrooms. By Andrea Hammer By Alisa Giardinelli A Day in the Life 80 Rachel Henighan '97 and Charlie Foreign Study 36 Mayer ’98 are on the run. i n R e v e r s e By Jeffrey Lott For more than one in 10 Swarthmore students, the United States is the foreign country. By Andrea Jarrell

ONTHECOVER: TWOSWARTHMORESTUDENTSWERE AMONG 32 PARTICIPANTS IN THE SPRING 2003 INTERNATIONAL HONORS PROGRAM. ALL 32 POSED IN A CIRCLE AT THE CLOSING CEREMONY IN CURITIBA,BRAZIL.PHOTOPROVIDEDBYRICARDO OCAMPO ’05 AND ESTHER ZELEDON ’04. CONTENTS: PHOTOBYJIMGRAHAM. PARLORTALK

keep a scrap of history on my desk, a ragged chunk of concrete not much bigger than Swarthmore my thumb. Its surface sports a tiny abstract painting, green with a splash of blue and COLLEGEBULLETIN a spot of red, a fragment of something larger—not a work of art but of history. It’s I Editor: Jeffrey Lott my personal piece of the Berlin Wall, a gift from my late brother-in-law who visited Berlin Managing Editor: Andrea Hammer in 1990, just after the Iron Curtain crumbled. It is more than a souvenir to me. In August 1961, I was 14, traveling with my family on a monthlong tour of Europe. We’d Class Notes Editor: Carol Brévart-Demm started in Rome, making our way through Italy, Switzerland, and West Germany. We went Staff Writer: Alisa Giardinelli on to Paris and London before returning to the United States. Yet on Aug. 15, two days Desktop Publishing: Audree Penner after East Germany and its Soviet masters cut Berlin in half, plunging the world into yet Art Director: Suzanne DeMott Gaadt, Gaadt Perspectives LLC another crisis over the divided city, we Administrative Assistant: flew into Berlin. My father, who loved Janice Merrill-Rossi My father, who loved history, had scheduled this side trip Intern: Elizabeth Redden ’05 months before as something intention- Editor Emerita: history, had scheduled ally different from the pleasant sight- Maralyn Orbison Gillespie ’49 seeing that occupied most of our days. Contacting Swarthmore College this side trip months But I’m sure he hadn’t counted on this. College Operator: (610) 328-8000 before. But I’m sure he Early on Aug. 16, we set off with a www.swarthmore.edu German driver and guide, passing the Admissions: (610) 328-8300 hadn’t counted on this. bombed-out Kaiser Wilhelm Church, a [email protected] war memorial, and viewing the ruined Alumni Relations: (610) 328-8402 My breathless diary Reichstag, torched by Hitler in 1933. Our [email protected] itinerary called for a visit to the eastern Publications: (610) 328-8568 reads, “This was the [email protected] sector, but we assumed this would not be Registrar: (610) 328-8297 most exciting day yet!” possible. Yet, as my breathless diary entry [email protected] reads: “This is the most exciting day yet! World Wide Web Our driver finagled a bit in German, and [they] let us into East Berlin.” We spent a tense www.swarthmore.edu half-hour in East Berlin, where, except for the Volkspolizei, we saw almost no one. “There is Changes of Address one street that has been rebuilt—Stalinallee,” I wrote. “The rest is mostly ruins and rub- Send address label along ble.” with new address to: Back in the West, thousands were streaming from every corner of the city to a unity Alumni Records Office rally at the city hall. With our guide as translator, we joined the crowd on foot. We stood Swarthmore College 500 College Avenue among 250,000 Berliners who heard Mayor Willy Brandt implore the world to defend his Swarthmore PA 19081-1390 isolated city. Nearly two years later, President John F. Kennedy famously declared, “Ich bin Phone: (610) 328-8435. Or e-mail: ein Berliner”; in 1987,President Ronald Reagan stood before the Brandenburg Gate and [email protected]. challenged Soviet President Mikhail Gorbachev to “tear down this wall.” But I was there The Swarthmore College Bulletin (ISSN when it went up. 0888-2126), of which this is volume CI, I didn’t study abroad as a college student. In those days, just a few students—usually number 3, is published in August, Sep- tember, December, March, and June by those studying foreign languages—took that opportunity. I am glad to see this has Swarthmore College, 500 College Avenue, changed at Swarthmore and elsewhere. I hope they have experiences as rich as mine when Swarthmore PA 19081-1390. Periodicals postage paid at Swarthmore PA and I was 14. That memorable day in Berlin opened my eyes to the world in a way that the cul- additional mailing offices. Permit No. tural riches of Italy, the spectacle of the Alps, the luxuries of Paris, and the pomp of Eng- 0530-620. Postmaster: Send address land could not match. By itself, travel is mind expanding, but a little brush with history changes to Swarthmore College Bulletin, 500 College Avenue, Swarthmore PA doesn’t hurt. 19081-1390.

SWARTHMORECOLLEGEBULLETIN —Jeffrey Lott © 2003 Swarthmore College 2 Printed in U.S.A. L E T T E R S

DEJAVU women and children. Any Christian or Jew This note is to express my pleasure in read- with an Israeli passport or visa was not ing the recent Bulletin. allowed to pray at a Christian or Jewish I send my appreciation for the “charge” holy place. delivered to the graduating class by Justice It was only after 1967 that the Arabs Jed Rakoff ’64. What a pleasure to see his expanded their terrorism beyond Israel’s description of A. Mitchell Palmer unsullied borders plus hijacking and destroying civil- by euphemism! My forebear Benjamin ian airlines (e.g., Olympics at Munich, Franklin’s observation “that he who would Athens airport, etc.). The terrorists includ- give up liberty for a little security will end ed Puerto Rican pilgrims among their vic- with neither liberty nor security” fits Jed tims. After 1967,Christian and Jewish pil- America Rakoff’s rather well, and in these days of grims were allowed to worship at their holy and the “Patriot” and “Homeland Security” is places. After 1967,U.S. manufacturers of World sadly appropriate. airplanes persuaded our government to You may be happy to learn that the City permit the sale of Phantoms, Skyhawks, parent guise of fighting “terrorism”—the Council of Reading, Pa., has joined those and so on, which benefited our balance of current version of the “communist men- cities and states that went on record as payments, which usually runs in the red. ace.” This is not a “policy,” nor is it discre- refusing to support the Patriot Act’s void- If Prestowitz’s “Middle Eastern elites” tionary. Tactics may change, and there may ing of the Bill of Rights in our Constitu- dared to criticize the dictators that run be variations on the general theme of tion. The Berks County Commissioners their countries, they would find themselves imperial expansion; however, the behavior have also been approached to withdraw imprisoned like dual Egyptian-U.S. citizen of this “rogue nation” is inherent in the any support for this act. As you know, Saad Eddin Ibrahim, who had the temerity requirement of any capitalist economy to Philadelphia has also joined in opposition. to “defame” Egypt by criticizing its treat- expand and grow to maximize profits. In converting Germany to a police state, I ment of Christians. JEREMIAH GELLES ’63 understand one of Hitler’s early acts was I assume that Prestowitz is unaware Brooklyn, N.Y. getting the Reichstag to pass a law similar that there are more than 30 million U.S. to our Patriot Act so as to free the police evangelical Christians who are more pro- UNCRITICALPRAISEFOR from undue hindrance. Israel than the U.S. State Department and CRITICALTHINKING Those who acclaim an American empire biased against dictatorships and suicide John Koppel ’78, in his September Bulletin might well read Mark Twain’s views of a bombers. letter to the editor, seems to miss the irony century ago. I remember being in Vietnam JEROME ABRAMS ’47 of his praise for the “critical thinkers” of and Cambodia some 40 years ago and Edison, N.J. Swarthmore—at least those in agreement quoting Yogi Berra, “It’s deja vu all over with him—while in the same breath mak- again.” When will we learn that violence IMPERIAL EXPANSION ing the gigantic and wholly uncritical leap and war are not the solution? It is pleasing and reassuring to find Clyde from President Bush’s Iraq prevarications FRED RICHARDS ’45 Prestowitz ’63, a classmate and former to “naked imperialism.” Koppel makes no Reading, Pa. political adversary, describing the United attempt whatsoever to justify this accusa- States as a “rogue nation.” We should tion. In the ultimate irony, he expects us CHALLENGETOISRAEL recall that the entire history of the United critical thinkers to accept uncritically this I’m writing to challenge one sentence in States is characterized by aggression and old-left chestnut from the ’60s. Koppel James Kurth’s review of Clyde Prestowitz’s the forceful seizure of land and resources. goes on to make the rather strange case [’63] Rogue Nation (September Bulletin): The Monroe Doctrine, Manifest Destiny, that because many of Saddam Hussein’s “Middle Eastern elites … pro-American on gunboat diplomacy, recurrent interven- most public atrocities occurred several many issues … are appalled by the biased tions, bombings, assassinations, and years ago, he should no longer be held and massive U.S. support for Israel.” destabilizations were and continue to be accountable for them, despite incontrovert- Except for the sale of Hawk defensive manifestations of our country’s quest to ible evidence of continued brutal repres- missiles in 1961, President Truman’s dominate as much of the world as possible. sion and murder. Critical thinkers might embargo of weapons was maintained for Perhaps what was previously more veiled is find this argument for a statute of limita- the first 19 to 20 years of Israel’s existence. now more overt but only for those who did tions on evil difficult to justify. During these 19 to 20 years, Israel’s Arab not want to see. As the sole superpower, DAVID HARRIS ’78 neighbors sent guerrillas across Israel’s the United States feels more confident in Houston borders to kill unarmed civilians, including trumpeting its aims, now under the trans- Please turn to page 79 for additional letters. DECEMBER 2003 3 C O L L E C T I O N R e a c h i n g campaign goal “a major task,” s a y s B l o o m

IN HIS ANNUAL STATE-OF-THE- agers, had “identified and COLLEGE REPORT to the faculty achieved” more than $1.2 mil- on Oct. 3, President Alfred H. lion in budget savings during Bloom cited both the need for the past two years “in ways that continued budgetary restraint we believe have had a minimum and the critical importance of impact on the quality of pro- the College’s current capital grams and operations and campaign, The Meaning of on individuals currently em- Swarthmore, to funding the ployed.” This collaborative ini- College’s future priorities. tiative will continue through Bloom noted that “Swarth- upcoming budget cycles. more’s overall economic condi- Among the measures taken tion has improved importantly” to trim the College’s $97.8 mil- in the past year. He announced lion annual budget for fiscal that the value of the College’s 2003–2004 are the elimination endowment has rebounded in of several vacant positions and JIM GRAHAM PRESIDENT ALFRED H. BLOOM SAYS THAT THE COLLEGE WILL recent months to about $930 a freeze on most departmental million. Since October, the operating budgets. Unlike some “INVEST EVERY EFFORT” TO REACH THE $230 MILLION GOAL endowment has grown to about of its peer schools, Swarthmore OF THE MEANING OF SWARTHMORE BY DECEMBER 2006. $960 million. has not been forced in the Stating, however, that if one recent economic downturn to million needed to complete the lished by the Board, faculty, and subtracts recent gifts, the value lay off faculty or staff. $230 million campaign into two administration before the cam- of the endowment would equal Bloom stressed the impor- parts, he said that $28 million paign began. its valuation five years ago, he tance of The Meaning of must first be raised to “cover In December, the campaign commented, “If we are to exer- Swarthmore in assuring that the fully the remaining cost of the total reached $141 million. In an cise our responsibilities as shep- College’s future needs are met, commitments we have made to interview this month, Bloom herds of this institution, balanc- while noting that the campaign date.” Among these top funding said that the true total now ing the interests of this genera- has already had a significant priorities were the completion remaining to reach The Mean- tion against those of future gen- impact on Swarthmore’s fiscal and operational endowment of ing of Swarthmore’s $230 mil- erations, we must continue to strength and educational pro- the new science center, the com- lion goal is $84 million, thanks hold annual increases in gram. He stated that campaign pletion of a new 75-bed resi- to a “generous challenge pledge” endowment spending for the gifts have enabled the College to dence hall now under construc- from Eugene Lang ’38, who will budget to no more than infla- hire six new tenure-track faculty tion near the train station, and provide the final $5 million of tion plus 1.5 percent.” This members in critical fields of extensive renovations of Parrish the campaign if the total reach- would require restraint and study, provide five additional Hall set to begin in summer es $225 million by December ongoing identification of possi- endowed faculty sabbaticals, 2004. 2006. Bloom said, “Given that ble expense reductions, said recruit a new dean of multicul- The remaining $63 million the campaign’s success so far Bloom. tural affairs, enhance the Athlet- will be designated for financial has depended heavily on those The president told the facul- ics Program and physical educa- aid endowment, support for who know us well, reaching our ty that members of his staff, in tion facilities, and undertake undergraduate research and goal will be a major task.” He concert with the Expenditure long-awaited initiatives in internship opportunities, tech- pledged that the College would Review Committee appointed career services. nology replacement, and a vari- “invest every effort over the next last year by the Board of Man- Dividing the remaining $91 ety of other objectives estab- three years to do so.” SWARTHMORECOLLEGEBULLETIN 4 E E pnn ocr eis h rhsr asked orchestra the series, concert opening its For Messiaen. Olivier composer French 20th-century of music the around events Santi. Semara Gamelan ensemble, sion percus- Balinese stage traditional Swarthmore’s its to welcomed and Levinson Gerald composer resident College’s the by work a commissioned orchestra The Eschenbach. Christoph Director Music under son sea- first Orchestra’s Philadelphia the in fall S ATMR UIIN LYDAROLE A PLAYED MUSICIANS WARTHMORE iac omte,carn tsne1997. since it the chairing of Committee, member Finance a as served has She 1983. Board. the lead to woman first the is Mather founding, College’s the since Man- agers of Board the of members prominent been have women Although 1997. since Board the chaired has who ’56, Lawrence J. Shane succeeds She chair. new its as ’65 Mather Weber Man- Barbara of selected Board agers the meeting, 6 Dec. MANAGERS its At OF BOARD CHAIR TO ’65 MATHER WEBER BARBARA shnahhdpandasao of season a planned had Eschenbach S S ahrwsfrteetdaMngrin Manager a elected first was Mather C C H H E E N N B B this A A C C a 8,cnit f2 uiin h play who musicians 22 of consists ’82, man Whit- Thomas Music of Professor Assistant 1983. to 1982 a from as Fellow and Guggenheim 1980 to 1979 from Henry Scholar a Luce as music Asian South in himself firsthand immersed later and 1970s early the in Messiaen with studied 1977, Swarth- since at more taught has who Levinson, forth- right.” and blunt “very calls Levinson that to write Music, of Professor Lang Jane Levinson, tonywt eprHmlo L in LLP Hamilton an Pepper is with She attorney 1968. in School Law Chicago of H H aea eaaSni ietdby directed Santi, Semara Gamelan ahrgautdfo h University the from graduated Mather 212mnt composition 1/2-minute 12 a Avatar, ’ ’ S S O O eti 1991. in dent presi- as Bloom H. Alfred inated nom- that mittee com- search the of chair vice was and Committee Affairs Academic the on served also has She P P E E N N I I n ila ’00. William and Benjamin, ’92, Emily ’90, children—Sarah four have They ’65. Mather Michael band the Women’s Forum. of Pennsylvania member founding a also is Lawyers. Mather Trial of College American the fellow of a is and Pennsylvania, of University the at law antitrust of taught solicitor Philadelphia, city as served has depart- She litigation ment. its of head and firm, the of partner managing former a Philadelphia, hldlhaadNwYr newspapers. York New and Philadelphia from reviews admiring drew that piece 75-minute Messiaen’s conducted Eschenbach same concerts, the in Later music. Balinese tra- ditional of Messiaen on influence powerful the illustrate to Hall Carnegie York’s New and Center Kimmel Philadelphia’s at in October perform to Gamelan the of members asked Eschenbach textures. and rhythms ed complicat- in drums and gongs, xylophones, N N ahrlvsi hldlhawt hus- with Philadelphia in lives Mather G G modern a Symphony, Turangalila G G O O N N JfryLott —Jeffrey JfryLott —Jeffrey G G

CHRISTOPHER AMOS/THE PHILADELPHIA ORCHESTRA

5 DECEMBER 2003 JEROME KOHLBERG ’46 (CENTER) TALKS WITH RICK T h e BELL ’98 (LEFT)ANDJAMES p r o m i s e o f MADDEN ’06 (RIGHT) AT A BRUNCH FOR PHILIP EVANS L e a d e r s h i p SCHOLARSINSEPTEMBER.HE JOKED,“ITLOOKSASIFMY PRIMARYROLEHEREISTOBE SWARTHMORE HAS MORE THAN 300 NAMED ENDOWED SCHOLARSHIPS, many honoring fami- ASHILLFORRICKBELL,”WHO ly members of alumni, former professors, and ISRUNNINGFORCONGRESSIN

friends of the College. Most are designed to ELEFTHERIOS KOSTANS LOSANGELES. support one or two students, but a few have grown into significant endowments that provide need-based finan- Swarthmore contingent joined him in the heat of summer for a cial aid for numerous young people. With 43 recipients currently dinosaur dig, learning not only about Lyson’s passion for paleontol- enrolled, the Philip Evans Scholarship, established in 1986 by ogy, but experiencing firsthand the rigors of field work in the bad- Jerome Kohlberg ’46 in honor of his late friend and classmate, has lands of his home state. “Everybody pushed their limits,” said become one of the College’s most rewarding scholarship programs. Lyson. “We all knew what we could do after going on that trip.” Envisioned by Kohlberg as a way of making it possible for stu- In September, current Evans Scholars and 10 recent alumni dents showing unusual promise to attend Swarthmore without gathered at the Pendle Hill Conference Center for a weekend retreat incurring any student loans, the need-based Evans Scholarships are to build relationships that will continue to enrich the students’ edu- cational experiences. Several reported on what they had accom- EVANS SCHOLAR TICHIANAA plished during the summer with their Evans Opportunity Grants, TIMMONS ’99 (LEFT) TALKS which allow scholarship recipients to take summer jobs and intern- ABOUTMEDICALSCHOOL ships that enhance their education, provide opportunities for social APPLICATIONS WITH TRINI service, or give them valuable experience toward possible careers. The students and alumni also participated in a leadership exercise TRUONG ’04. TIMMONS WILL led by Dean of the College Bob Gross ’62. ENTERTHEUNIVERSITYOF James Madden ’06 spoke of his summer in Boston, where he ROCHESTERSCHOOLOF worked for FairTest, an advocacy organization that works to elimi-

ELEFTHERIOS KOSTANS MEDICINE IN FALL 2004. nate the racial, class, gender, and cultural barriers to equal opportu-

evolving to become a broader program of support and encouragement for recipients. AVIAN PERFUME “Today’s students and alumni who have benefited Julie Hagelin, assistant professor of biology, says that at least one species of from their Evans Scholarships are in the process of form- bird has a striking scent that is associated with courtship. The crested auklet ing a powerful community in which the opportunities (Aethia cristatella), a seabird from offered by Swarthmore are sowing the seeds of future Alaska, produces a tangerine-like leadership,” says Dean of Admissions and Financial Aid aroma. The region of the body Jim Bock ’90.“Many have already faced significant chal- where the odor is most concen- lenges in their young lives, and Swarthmore is opening trated to human noses—the auklet’s doors that some of them didn’t even know were there. We head and neck—features prominently in expect that they will go on in their lives to open addition- courtship displays. “You can smell a group al doors for others.” of crested auklets before you can see Even before they began their college experience this them,” she reports. Although the origin fall, the eight new Evans Scholars met each other during and current social function of the avian an Outward Bound sailing experience on the Chesapeake perfume is unknown (one theory is that Bay. After six days aboard a 30-foot boat, Katie Chamblee healthier birds may excrete more of the ’07 said, “My ambitions for college changed. I realized oils that give rise to the smell), it is that my goal was to be a certain kind of person rather known that the birds wear their fetching than just a certain kind of student.” scent during breeding season only. “This is a Last summer, Evans Scholar Tyler Lyson ’06 organized mode of communication in birds that we’ve a different kind of challenge for 13 students, Professor of overlooked completely until now,” says Hagelin, Biology Scott Gilbert, and several College administrators. who teaches a course in animal behavior Lyson hails from Marmarth, N.D., where, as a high that includes 4 to 6 hours of fieldwork school student, he amassed one of the country’s most per week. © D. ROBY & K. BRINK/VIREO important collections of dinosaur and turtle fossils. The —Alisa Giardinelli SWARTHMORECOLLEGEBULLETIN 6 nity posed by standardized tests. He also had an internship with I n M e m o r i a m the Urban League of Eastern Massachusetts, where he helped organize a citywide program of community discussions on racial DAVID ROSEN, MATHEMATICIAN and ethnic diversity. “I wouldn’t have been able to do any of this AND MUSICIAN without the Evans,” he said. “I would have been working for mini- THE COLLEGE COMMUNITY WAS SADDENED by mum wage somewhere.” the Aug. 24 death of Professor Emeritus of At a Sunday brunch attended by Kohlberg, students and alumni Mathematics David Rosen, age 82. were eager to talk about the impact of their scholarships. “Receiving Receiving a B.A. from New York Universi- an Evans said that they saw something in me that I didn’t even see ty in 1942 followed, after a stint in the U.S. in myself. It was very affirming,” said Imo Akpan ’02, a research Air Force, by a Ph.D. in mathematics from technician at Boston’s Children’s Hospital who is currently applying the University of Pennsylvania in 1952, to medical schools. “Swarthmore is an incredible place. I feel like I Rosen then joined the College faculty. He remained at Swarthmore was sort of born here.” Later, Akpan, Tichianaa Timmons ’99 and until his retirement in 1987. Mitzie-Ann Davis ’02, first-year medical students at the University During his tenure at Swarthmore, Rosen served as department of Rochester and Temple University respectively, spent time talking chair from 1969 to 1977 and president for three terms of Swarth- with several premed Evans Scholars. more’s chapter of Sigma Xi. Also enjoying the networking opportunities was Rick Bell ’98,a He was an expert in number theory—a branch of mathematics self-described “half-black, half-Korean kid” who recently that deals with the properties of the integers—publishing on the announced his candidacy for Congress. A passionate liberal, he’s topic into his retirement. Rosen’s colleague, Buffington Professor of challenging the incumbent Democrat in his working-class district Mathematics Gene Klotz, said: “David had a lifelong love affair with in Los Angeles. number theory, and his legacy lives on in a continued fraction that Pressed by the students to make a few remarks, Kohlberg said, bears his name, the Rosen Continued Fraction (an infinite collec- “This country is in a crisis; we’ve lost our way. Too many people are tion of closely related algorithms, each of which expresses real num- sitting on the sidelines, complaining but not doing anything about bers in terms of certain algebraic integers).” He was the co-author it. There’s a crying need for involvement, passion, criticism, and of three textbooks on calculus and probability. leadership. This is a role that we hope you will fill in the future.” An accomplished musician, Rosen played violin as well as double —Jeffrey Lott bass, performing for 50 years with the College Orchestra. He also performed with local symphonies and chamber music groups and Learn more anout the Evans Scholarships at www.philipevansscholars.org. served on the board of Orchestra 2001. —Carol Brévart-Demm

“WAR IS ALWAYS A DEFEAT FOR HUMANITY”

NOBEL PEACE PRIZE WINNER and Conflict Studies Program Oscar Arias Sanchez ended his as well as the Pendle Hill Study speech with a challenge: “Let us Center. do something at least for our Arias emphasized the need sons and daughters. They for increased aid from devel- deserve to live in a more just oped to developing nations— ELEFTHERIOS KOSTANS and ethical world in the new although not by military OSCARARIASSANCHEZ,FORMERPRESIDENTOFCOSTRICAANDWINNEROF century.” Arias, who won the means. In a world in which prize in 1987 for successfully nuclear proliferation, war, and THE NOBEL PEACE PRIZE IN 1987, SPOKE AT THE COLLEGE IN OCTOBER. uniting Central American lead- terrorism are on the rise, he battlefield.” es worldwide, he said. ers around the regional peace voiced the need in the new cen- Arias sees the real threats to “Military spending repre- plan, spoke on Oct. 30. tury for a new system of morali- humanity not primarily in ter- sents the world’s greatest per- His talk “Doing Justice: The ty and values based on compas- rorism but in the conditions version,” said Arias. “Every dol- Path of Peace” was the second sion, solidarity, social justice, that spawn it, such as poverty, lar spent on weapons represents in this year’s Thursday night and courage instead of material- disease, illiteracy, and inequality. a missed opportunity to provide forum series called “Walking the ism, warmongering, and fear. The solutions to these problems education, health care, or food Way of Peace: Peace Building in “War is always a defeat for lie in control of the arms trade, for the poor. Security is not a a Violent World,” sponsored by humanity,” he said, “Conflicts decreased defense spending, precondition for peace—peace the Lang Center for Civic and can be better resolved at the free trade between the First and is a precondition for security.” Social Responsibility, the Peace negotiating table than on the Third Worlds, and health servic- —Carol Brévart-Demm DECEMBER 2003 7 Students Win N e t F i g h t

Swarthmore student activists won a major victory for free speech on the Internet this fall with their efforts to make available documents from Diebold Election Systems Inc. that call attention to problems with the company’s electronic voting machines. The controversy, which made headlines here and abroad, also became part of the larger debate about e-voting as a reliable and worthwhile practice. Sophomores Nelson Pavlosky and Luke Smith and the Online Policy Group, a nonprofit Internet service provider, filed suit in a California federal court against the company in November seeking to enjoin Diebold from claiming copyright infringement over the documents’ release. The company had for months threatened legal

action against dozens of individuals who refused to remove links to TIM SHAFFER the data. But at a Dec. 1 meeting with the judge, a Diebold spokesman said the company would not sue the students after all, a INTERNET FREE SPEECH ADVOCATES NELSON PAVLOSKY (LEFT)ANDLUKE marked reversal in strategy. SMITHPOSTEDINTERNALMEMOSOFTHEDIEBOLDCORP.,AMAKEROF Still, Pavlosky and Smith are continuing with their case against ELECTRONICVOTINGMACHINES,THENSUCCESSFULLYCHALLENGEDTHE Diebold, arguing under the Digital Millennium Copyright Act COMPANY’S EFFORTS TO SUPPRESS THE DOCUMENTS.

add character to the freshly • Opportunities for orientation and train- The Lang painted space. A porch also ing to prepare students for participation in provides a view of the communities Center: crossroads that links cam- • Reflection and assessment to help stu- pus and community. dents and community partners identify suc- All Aboard! Joining Keith in the Lang cessful strategies for social change Center, Associate Director • The Lang Visiting Professorship for Issues

JIM GRAHAM NEWHEADQUARTERS for Student Programs and of Social Change, which brings to Swarth- Training Pat James works more individuals distinguished by their THE EUGENE M. LANG CENTER FOR CIVIC AND closely with many student volunteer groups, identification and engagement with social SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY has moved to reno- provides support for projects developed justice, civil liberties, human rights, and vated quarters in the Swarthmore train sta- through Swarthmore Foundation Fellow- democracy tion—a location that, according to its direc- ships, offers students training and orienta- • Swarthmore Foundation, which supports tor, former Provost Jennie Keith, symbolizes tion for work in the community, and directs service efforts of students, staff, and faculty the link between the College and the larger the Lang Opportunity Scholarship Program. members and summer internships community. The center, which was endowed Associate Director for Community Partner- • The Lang Opportunity Scholars Program, in 2001 by an $8.5 million gift from Eugene ships and Planning Cynthia Jetter ’74 (see which provides financial support, guidance, Lang ’38, is intended to provide vision, lead- sidebar) has helped launch several partner- and mentoring for selected Swarthmore stu- ership, and support for a central commit- ships both locally and internationally. dents to design and implement effective ment of Swarthmore. The Lang Center will provide administra- solutions to significant social problems “The College’s mission from the begin- tive support for the following: ning has been to combine academic excel- “Courses that link the campus to the lence and social responsibility,” says Keith, • Paid summer internships for students community are an important way to prepare Centennial Professor of Anthropology. • Fellowships for faculty members to design students to use their intellectual skills in the “We’re hoping the center will support that curricula that will link their academic work world,” Keith says. “Swarthmore students mission by making preparation for leader- to civic and social responsibility issues are strongly motivated to work toward posi- ship in creating a more just and humane • Partnerships with community organiza- tive social change. We hope to offer them society more central to the educational tions that will maximize the quality of edu- more opportunities—both in the classroom experience at Swarthmore.” cational experiences for students as well as and in the community—to strengthen their In the renovated building, a spiral stair- the quality of their contributions to the ability to do this effectively.” case, angled ceilings, and patterned molding community —Alisa Giardinelli SWARTHMORECOLLEGEBULLETIN 8 (DMCA) that Diebold must pay damages for intimidating Internet the public that the memos are available at sites not associated with service providers. The hearing is scheduled for Feb. 9. Swarthmore. The College also challenged Diebold in writing to back Although the documents—several thousand company memos up its claim of copyright infringement. and e-mail messages—had been available on-line for months, they “The College administration applauds our students for their ide- did not become media fodder until the end of October, when alism and initiative, for acting on their consciences in the interest of Diebold issued cease-and-desist orders to programmers and others, fair elections and healthy democracy,” Gross said in a statement. including several Swarthmore students, who posted them on the However, some students think the College should have been Internet. Diebold had maintained that the posting was a case of more supportive. Pavlosky, who put the documents on-line through copyright infringement and had demanded that the documents be the campus organization Swarthmore Coalition for the Digital removed from each Web site. Commons, told The New York Times that the cease-and-desist letters In response to the orders and to bring the College into compli- were “a perfect example of how copyright law can be and is abused” ance with the DMCA, the administration asked any user who pro- to stifle freedom of speech. He added that he and other advocates vided a link to the documents to remove it. Dean Robert Gross ’62 wished the College had decided to fight instead of asking them to says this was done on the advice of legal counsel, despite the Col- take down the files. lege’s support of the students’ cause. The files, now reposted to the College’s site, never stopped circu- Although not confronting the company directly, the College lating on-line. They include discussions of bugs in Diebold’s soft- encouraged students to file a "counternotification" under the copy- ware and warnings that its computer network is poorly protected right law against Diebold's take-down demand. In addition, the against hackers. The students say that by trying to spread the word administration alerted students that it is defensible on fair-use and about problems with the company’s software, they are performing a free-speech grounds to use their Web sites to describe the content of valuable form of electronic civil disobedience that has broad impli- the memos they have seen and their implications for American cations for American society. democracy and to use their sites to inform interested members of —Alisa Giardinelli

taxis stopped. It was a very eerie feeling,” women’s groups and organizations, which Catalyst for Change Jetter said. “Groups of young men wouldn’t reminded me again that what we all want is WHEN CYNTHIA JETTER visited Bytom, Poland, let me pass. It was a tough time, and it shut the ability to provide for our children. I feel this summer, she stopped traffic. me down for a while.” very strongly that the contributions that our “I was the only black person there, but I But recognizing that change takes time, students can make to this community will go thought, ‘OK. No one is going to bother me.’ Jetter forged ahead with her mission in far in improving the quality of life for many But buses stopped, police came out, and Poland. The programs she hopes to set up in of the residents of Bytom, not to mention Bytom will add to Swarth- how much they will come away with from more’s Study Abroad Program there.” there. With her Lang Center Jetter is also working to create deeper and colleagues and the Swarth- more stable partnerships between Swarth- more College faculty members more and community agencies in Chester. who lead the program, Jetter Students will be engaged in housing rehabil- hopes to take Swarthmore’s itation, tutoring, mentoring, sports clinics, international work to a new financial literacy instruction, computer liter- level by creating community acy, Web page designs, literacy, English as a based and service learning second language, cultural enrichment, grass- opportunities for students in roots organizing, nonprofit management, Poland. and teen leadership. The center is also con- Months after leaving sidering developing a semester in Chester Poland, Jetter is still process- program, which would require students to JIM GRAHAM ing her experiences there. She live in the city. THESTAFFOFTHECOLLEGE’SLANGCENTERFORCIVICAND plans to be honest with inter- Back in the local community, Jetter SOCIALRESPONSIBILITYRECENTLYMOVEDTOQUARTERSINTHE ested students—especially helped professors such as Associate Profes- SWARTHMORE TRAIN STATION: (LEFTTORIGHT)EXECUTIVEDIREC- those of color. sor of Sociology Sarah Willie and Assistant TOR JENNIE KEITH, ASSOCIATE DIRECTOR FOR COMMUNITY PART- “I talked to the mayor and Professor of Music Tom Whitman to extend heads of organizations about their work with students in Chester, Pa. NERSHIPS AND PLANNING CYNTHIA JETTER ’74, ASSOCIATE DIREC- how to help students of color “Sarah was very excited by the opportunity TOR FOR STUDENT PROGRAMS AND TRAINING PAT JAMES, ADMIN- feel safe,” she said. “What I to add another dimension to her class,” said ISTRATIVE ASSISTANT DELORES ROBINSON, AND ASSISTANT TO THE enjoyed most were the discus- Jetter. DIRECTOR AND PROGRAMS COORDINATOR DEBRA KARDON-BROWN. sions with the various —Andrea Hammer DECEMBER 2003 9 A Roof Dogs’ Tale

PROFESSORANDCHAIROFTHE your eyes wide open.” wife’s “whimsical” oil paintings, ART DEPARTMENT BRIAN MEUNIER Generally packing up his van which add to the story without ISWORKINGONASERIESOF with 1,200 pounds of material just duplicating what’s already CHILDREN'SBOOKSWITHHISWIFE, for sculpting wood and metal been said, as “magical realism.” PAINTER PERKY EDGERTON. works up to 7 feet tall, Meunier, Using the earthen tones of Mex- 50, recently experienced some ico, they convey a strong sense ing along like a wave, gave him a muscular problems that inter- of place. “sense of the world being fered with his studio work. “I The Two Gustavos, the second round”—and the launching would have gone crazy if I had work in the trilogy that is now point for his first children’s not done something else. So I in production, focuses on a story, which has also moved started writing, which is so father and son, basketball, and adults. much more portable than sculp- water usage in the village of “The dogs could be free, but ture,” he says. “I always wanted Zachilla. A Man With Quiet they need to be convinced. Like to shrink my studio into a suit- Hands, the third book, is about a ANDY SHELTER the talk of freedom today, it case,” referring to the “practical 15-year-old girl’s idealized mem- needs to sink in,” Meunier says, portability of storytelling.” ory of her deceased father and THE NEW CHILDREN’S BOOK using the dogs as a metaphor. Edgerton was actually the the boy she hopes to marry in Pipiolo and the Roof Dogs gestat- Lupe, the young female narrator, first one to draft Pipiolo, which the mountain village of Jose ed in San Pablo, Mexico, during is “full of heart … she wants turned out too long for the for- Pacifico. a sabbatical leave. As Professor everyone to experience freedom.” mat of many children’s books. From Nov. 14 to Dec. 14, the of the Art Department Brian As a sculptor and professor So Meunier, who has enjoyed College’s List Gallery hosted an Meunier walked through the at Swarthmore for 24 years, writing since his college days at exhibition titled Children, featur- mountains with his wife, paint- Meunier has often spent his the University of Massachu- ing Edgerton’s paintings, along er Perky Edgerton, he was in- leave time in villages outside of setts–Amherst, where he with a selection of portraits and trigued by the rooftop guard the Oaxaca Valley in Mexico received a bachelor of fine arts large-scale narrative paintings dogs, which become angry be- with his wife and two daugh- in 1976, took a stab at subse- of children. Meunier also joined cause they are without human ters. In addition, “summers as quent revisions. In August, Dut- his wife to sign copies of Pipiolo contact. Meunier said that their academics have allowed us to ton Children’s Books released and The Roof Dogs. barking in the middle of the keep the creative juices going,” Pipiolo, the first in a projected “I’ve been training for this night, starting in one village at he says. “Travel opens one’s trilogy for 3 to 6 year olds. work all my life,” Meunier says. the end of the valley and mov- eyes. You go in naïve—with Meunier characterizes his —Andrea Hammer

WORMS INFEST None of us on the client services team had a them regain network access. day off for a month.” Matt Wallaert ’04, who worked about 120 COLLEGE Jacobsen says the three worms differ from hours for ITS in the two weeks before classes NETWORK more traditional viruses in that they infected began, says students generally understood The timing was computers without any actions being per- the inconvenience: “I think they realized this exceptionally formed by the user. Traditionally, Jacobsen was a problem we needed to respond to as a bad. Just as stu- explains, viruses come in the form of e-mail community.” dents returned to attachments, and users must open the Jacobsen says worms like Blaster, Sobig, © MARK COHEN campus at sum- attachment in order to infect their system. and Nachi represent new, more malicious mer’s end, three virulent worms were released These worms, however, traveled rapidly trends in viral activity. In hopes of finding into Windows computer systems worldwide: through network ports to infect other com- more efficient remedies for any future out- Blaster on Aug. 15, Nachi on Aug. 18, and puters within seconds—often without the breaks, Jacobsen says ITS has taken such Sobig on Aug. 25—leaving the College’s user even knowing his computer was vulnera- steps as purchasing a high-end CD burner to Information Technology Services (ITS) profes- ble to infection. make possible rapid mass distributions of CDs sionals and student dorm consultants scram- To remedy the problem, ITS staff and containing anti-virus updates and patches bling to secure Swarthmore’s network before student consultants took the drastic step of possible, increasing the frequency of auto- classes began. isolating every Windows computer from the matic updates at public computers, and find- “It was just tiring,” says Robin Jacobsen, network. They then went room to room to ing ways to pinpoint more quickly infected manager of client services for ITS. “Everyone install anti-virus patches and security computers before viruses spread. was pitching in, working around the clock. updates on all computers before letting —Elizabeth Redden ’05 SWARTHMORECOLLEGEBULLETIN 10 Reynolds Caps F a l l S e a s o n W i t h C C Championship

CROSS-COUNTRY Junior Lang Reynolds was named Centennial Conference (CC) Runner of the Year after finishing first in the con- ference championship in Center Valley, Pa. Reynolds covered the men’s 8K course in 26:45.27,becoming the first male in Swarth- more history to capture the championship. The Garnet placed third in the team standings as James Golden ’05 and Garrett Ash ’05 ran 15th and 16th, respectively. The third-place finish—Swarthmore’s best—equals the performance of the 1993 and 1999 squads. In women’s cross-country, Elizabeth Gardner ’05 and Debbie Farrelly ’06 led the Garnet to a fourth-place finish at the CC Cham- pionships. The duo ran the 6K course together—Gardner finished 10th in 25:00.90, and Farrelly ran 11th in 25:02.22, earning sec- ond-team All-CC honors. Njideka Akunyili ’04 finished 27th, and Caroline Ritter ’06 was 33rd.

FIELD HOCKEY (7–11, 3–7) Despite the record, the young Garnet MARK DUZENSKI squad closed out the season on a high note with victories over EMMA BENN ’04 CLOSED OUT HER SWARTHMORE VOLLEYBALL CAREER Haverford (2–1) and conference foe Franklin & Marshall (3–2) to BYSETTINGFIVECOLLEGERECORDSINHERFINALSEASON. set the tone for next season. Senior co-captain Helen Leitner and sophomore forward Heidi Fieselmann led the Garnet in scoring, shutouts, recording a 1.38 goals-against average. Natalie Negrey ’07 with 16 points apiece. First-year players Neema Patel and Karen provided a spark to the offense, providing two game-winning goals. Lorang made an immediate impact, earning second-team all-CC She was one of six CC players to record a hat trick when she tallied honors. Patel led the defense with 5 points, and Lorang posted a three goals in a 6–1 victory over Washington. In the most exciting 2.85 goals-against average and a .809 save percentage in goal. game of the season, Becky Strauss ’06 scored in overtime to give the Garnet a 2–1 come-from-behind victory over Johns Hopkins. MEN’S SOCCER (5–12–2, 3–6) The young Garnet squad snapped its 17-match CC losing streak, winning three conference games for the VOLLEYBALL (14–18, 5–5) Led by senior co-captain Emma Benn, first time since the 1994 season. The losing streak ended with a the Garnet set a host of school records and posted its most CC vic- 1–0 victory over Washington College, when Colton Bangs ’07 tories since 1995, including a season-ending 3–2 victory over scored a man-down goal with 2:44 remaining. The Garnet also Haverford that snapped a 14-match losing streak to the Fords. recorded a 1–0 victory over 12th-ranked Johns Hopkins. Senior Benn closed out her career as the all-time Garnet leader in career captain Brendan Moriarty tallied the goal to give the Garnet its first matches played (110), career games played (376), career attempts victory over the Blue Jays since 1993. Junior goalkeeper Nate Shupe (2,465), career kills (748), and career digs (913). The outside hitter was instrumental in those two victories. He posted a 1.68 goals- earned second-team all-CC honors. Sophomore setter Emily Con- against average and a .780 save percentage, earning all-CC honor- lon and junior co-captain Natalie Dunphy ranked first and second able mention. Shupe, an honors astrophysics major, was also in the CC in service aces with 82 and 77,respectively. Conlon set named to the CoSIDA Academic All-America District II second Garnet records for assists in a season (949), assists in a career team. (1,484), and aces (82) in a season, earning all-CC honorable men- tion. Dunphy finished fourth in the CC in blocks per game (0.90) WOMEN’S SOCCER (9–9, 4–6) Led by senior captains Katey McCaf- and set a school mark for total blocks in a season with 105. She also frey and Catherine Salussolia, the Garnet recorded first-time victo- holds the Garnet mark with 136 career aces. Senior blocker Katrina ries over Johns Hopkins and Franklin & Marshall. McCaffrey led Morrison finished third in the CC in blocks per game (0.94) and the squad in scoring with a career-high eight goals and four assists closed out her career with a school record 126 solo blocks and 208 for 20 points. The midfielder ranked sixth in the CC in points per total blocks. First-year outside hitter Erica George set school season game (1.18) and seventh in goals per game (0.47). Goalkeeper records for attempts (1,044), kills (312), and digs (405). Salussolia finished fifth in the CC with 96 saves and three —Mark Duzenski DECEMBER 2003 11

Welcome T H E S C O T T A R B O R E T U M H A S B E E N G R O W I N G VisitorsA L O N G S I D E S W A R T H M O R E F O R 7 5 Y E A R S .

By Ben Yagoda

JOHN WISTER H’42 OPPOSITE PAGE: © HARRY KALISH; LEFT: JOHN WISTER: COURTESY OF THE SCOTT ARBORETUM; ABOVE: GOTTLIEB HAMPFLER

n 1929, a noted landscape architect and transformation of Swarthmore’s campus park-like area would arise centrally located, horticulturist spent a few days examin- from an uninspiring series of horticultural easy of access, surrounded by a densely pop- Iing the grounds of Swarthmore Col- accidents to the remarkable arboretum it is ulated country, of great value educationally, lege. He was unimpressed with what he today. But another man’s vision and his self-supporting, and always to the advan- found. “The variety of trees is not very widow’s philanthropy made Wister’s accom- tage and prestige of Swarthmore College.” great,” he commented in his report, “cover- plishment possible. The visionary was In his copy of the prospectus, Swarth- ing only about seventy species in about thir- Arthur Hoyt Scott, Class of ty genera, and two quite inferior trees, the 1895, the son of the Norway Maple and the Norway Spruce, are founder of the Scott Paper President Aydelotte tried to used in much larger quantities than is desir- Co.—and a horticultural able. The planting of smaller trees, of flow- enthusiast of high magni- discuss a mere beautification ering shrubs, and of herbaceous plants has tude. In the early 1920s, been haphazard.” Scott, a resident of nearby of the grounds. But Mrs. Scott As for Crum Creek and the Crum Rose Valley, conceived the Woods, the same man recalled at a later idea of an installation on said, “It must be an arboretum, date: “They were utterly neglected and were the Swarthmore campus as a result in a most dilapidated condi- where homeowners would or I cannot … allow Arthur’s tion…. There were hundreds of dead trees be able to observe an both standing and fallen. The undergrowth attractive display of plants name to be used in any way.” was dense and mostly of shrubs that were that could thrive in their not particularly desirable. Poison ivy, catbri- own gardens. more College President Frank Aydelotte ar, and honeysuckle particularly were to be Scott found an enthusiastic audience in scribbled a question in the margin: “How found in large masses, smothering other Samuel Palmer, head of the Botany Depart- self-supporting[?]” growth. The entire area constituted a most ment at Swarthmore, who, in 1926, present- The plan’s grandeur seemed to doom it. serious fire menace … and the property was ed the Board of Managers with a plan to Early in 1927,Scott wrote Palmer a pes- inaccessible except for a few trails and one make the entire College property an arbore- simistic letter, doubting that the Board of or two rather hastily constructed paths.” tum. The document did not tend toward Managers would donate even the land need- John Wister, who wrote those words, was moderation, stating at one point, “Should ed for an arboretum and concluding, “I’m responsible, more than anyone else, for the such a development take place a beautiful inclined to think that the best you could DECEMBER 2003 13 TREEPEONIES(LEFT)CONSTITUTED ONEOFTHEEARLYCOLLECTIONSOF THE SCOTT FOUNDATION—WHICH WASRENAMEDTHESCOTTARBORETUM IN THE MID-1980S. THEY ARE NOW FOUNDONTHESLOPEBELOW CLOTHIERMEMORIALHALL.

THECRUMCREEK(BELOW)RUNS THROUGH ABOUT 200 ACRES OF WOODLANDOWNEDBYTHECOL- LEGE—ONEOFTHELAST SIGNIFICANT GREEN SPACES IN DELAWARE COUNTY.

PARRISH HALL (RIGHT) WAS BUILT ONABARRENHILLBUTISNOW SURROUNDEDBYLUSHGARDENS ANDVERDANTTREES.THEDEAN BOND ROSE GARDEN DISPLAYS MORE THAN 600 TYPES OF ROSES.

CLAIRE SAWYERS

get would be permission to beautify the grounds.” Scott was also preoccupied with his failing health. In the same letter, he told Palmer that his doctors had forbidden him to return to work for another three months, and, although he was willing to offer the arboretum project what support he could, “I am a poor reed to lean on.” Just weeks later, Scott suffered a stroke and died suddenly. He was 52. However, his widow, Edith Wilder Scott, Class of 1896; his sister, Margaret Moon; and her husband, Owen Moon—from the Class of 1894—did not forget his idea. In 1929, they approached President Aydelotte and offered to fund an endowment in Arthur Scott’s honor, with the proceeds to be used for the kind of campus plantings Scott had envisioned. Initially, the president tried to steer the discussion in the direction Scott had predicted—a mere beautification of the grounds. But Mrs. Scott would have none of it. “I regret very much that my gift has been announced, for there are so many things to be discussed and decided upon,” she wrote to Aydelotte in May. “It must be an arboretum, or I cannot … allow Arthur’s name to be used in any way.” Aydelotte ulti- mately accepted the offer on these terms: If SWARTHMORECOLLEGEBULLETIN THE TERRY WILD STUDIO 14 botanical expert and was in every way the impressive shopping. Wister’s secret was logical person to direct the new Scott Foun- buying small. Thus, the cost of the American dation. Not the least of his qualifications hemlock varied between $30 to $100 per was that he didn’t need the money: His 1,000 plants, and the plants were between 3 salary was $1,000 a year, to be paid directly and 9 inches high. to him by Mrs. Scott. Beyond that guarantee, the John Wister was responsible

FRIENDS HISTORICAL LIBRARY finances of the Scott Foundation were for the transformation of dubious at best. The endowment was Swarthmore’s campus. But Arthur reported in the press to be about Hoyt Scott’s vision made Wister’s $100,000, but that was a fanciful figure. accomplishment possible. The amount of real assets collected totaled a little less than He acquired some taller specimens as $16,000, which the College’s comptroller well. On a wet March morning, the founda- reckoned would provide a total of $1,059 in tion was formally dedicated with the plant- COURTESY OF THE SCOTT ARBORETUM annual income. On the other hand, at least ing of a long row of lilacs near the eastern for the time being, the foundation didn’t entrance of the campus, proceeding from the endowment would pay the salary of a really need money. There was no land or the Friends Meetinghouse down the lawn. director and the cost of plants, the College equipment to buy, no staff to pay, no offices The same year, Allen White, Class of would supply labor for the planting and to furnish. (Incidentally, Wister’s annual 1894, and his wife donated $1,000 for the subsequent care of the specimens. Mrs. salary remained $1,000 a year until 1959. planting of Japanese cherry trees in honor Scott and the Moons agreed and put forth Then, it dropped. By the end of his time at of their late daughter, Carolien White Pow- as director the name of John Caspar Wister. Scott, he was paying himself $1 a year.) ers, Class of 1922. Wister bought 68 cherry Wister, 42 years old in 1929, was a direct In a “Preliminary Report” submitted to trees (two each of 34 varieties), about 2 feet descendant of Caspar Wistar (subsequent Aydelotte in 1930, Wister advocated concen- high on average, for a grand total of $231— generations changed the a in the surname trating on the College’s “greatest asset”— “leaving ample allowance for the best soil to an e), who emigrated from Heidelberg to the Crum Woods. The portion adjoining preparation I have ever seen.” The trees were Philadelphia in 1717.One of his descen- campus, he said, dants, and his namesake, was a Philadelphia “could be developed physician and anatomist, after whom two into a wild garden of A NEW ARBORETUM ANNIVERSARY BOOK notable things were named: the Wistar great and unusual At its 75th anniversary, the Scott Arboretum is known through- Institute, a still-operating center of medical beauty unlike any- out the world as a leading horticultural institution. Thousands of and scientific research, and the flower wiste- thing in this section people visit the Swarthmore campus each year to enjoy its gar- ria. Another was Owen Wister, author of of the country at a dens, paths, and programs. To The Virginian. John Wister grew up on an comparatively small commemorate its rich past and estate in the then-rural Germantown sec- cost.” He recom- current vitality, the Scott Arbore- tion of Philadelphia, where he liked to fol- mended planting on tum and The Donning Co. have low around the gardener and haunt the a scale that “would published a 176-page book that greenhouse. At the age of 14, he grew his make a sight that includes a lively history by noted first study collection of flowers—some 40 would make Swarth- author Ben Yagoda; a foreword different chrysanthemums. He took a degree more famous.” The reflecting on the relationship of in landscape architecture at Harvard and, president gave his the College to its campus by T. after graduation, worked in the offices of approval, and Wister Kaori Kitao, William R. Kenan Jr., practitioners in Philadelphia and New York. used his $1,000 Professor Emerita of Art History; In 1917,after enlisting in the Army, he was budget to buy some and pages of historic and con- sent to France, where he spent all his leave 14,000 hemlocks, temporary photographs—includ- time visiting the great gardens of France, 5,000 dogwoods, ing many color pictures showing the beauty of the Swarthmore often sending notable specimens back to the 4,000 mountain campus today. The book is available from the Scott Arboretum United States. laurel, and 400 hol- for $34.95 plus shipping costs. Call (610) 328-8025 to order. After the war, Wister developed a nation- lies. Even in 1930, al reputation as a landscape designer and a this was some pretty DECEMBER 2003 15 THE SCOTT OUTDOOR AMPHITHEATER (LEFT)ISAMASTERFULEXAMPLEOF DESIGNINGINHARMONYWITH NATURE. SINCE 1942, IT HAS BEEN THESITEOFEVERYCOLLEGE COMMENCEMENT,INCLUDINGA RAINY DAY IN 1983, WHEN MEMBERS OF THE GRADUATING CLASS MARCHED THERE FROM THE RAIN LOCATION LAMB-MILLERFIELDHOUSETOHAVE THEIRDEGREESCONFERREDENMASSE BYPRESIDENTDAVIDFRASER.

SPECIMENTREES(RIGHT, WITH CLOTHIERMEMORIALHALLINTHE

BACKGROUND) AREONEOFTHE TRADEMARKSOFTHEARBORETUM- CAMPUS.

THE TERRY WILD STUDIO

planted along the edge of the lawn near dated areas into a pleasant woodland park living in a rented apartment in Swarth- Cedar Lane. with attractive paths.” more—drafted a 13-page memorandum for Improving the state of the Crum Woods, The 1930s at the Scott Foundation were President John Nason and the Board of envisioned by Wister as the centerpiece of marked by a sense of possibility and excite- Managers, titled “Future Plans.” It outlined the arboretum, was not so easily addressed. ment, as Wister—who maintained his resi- how, after a long period of stasis, the foun- In his words: “There were quantities of dence in Germantown, coming down to dation could and should still “accomplish dead, diseased, or broken trees. There was Swarthmore a couple of times a week during its original purpose.” The report exuded dreadful erosion. There were sickening piles growing season, less often during the rest of confidence, almost a sense of manifest des- of rubbish, old furniture, old stoves, moun- the year—began to turn his vision into real- tiny; even the verbs and the repetitive sen- tains of tin cans and bottles.” Clearly, many ity. The collection and the endowment grew, tence structure had a martial feel to them. hundreds of man-hours were needed to slowly but steadily, and the horticultural Referring to the foundation, Wister wrote: attend to the situation. But the Swarthmore world at large began to take notice. Then, “Its collections must increase in size and grounds crew of a dozen or so men had Pearl Harbor was attacked, the United in importance. It must show the plants to already added numerous Scott-related tasks States entered World War II, and the grand the public in the most effective way. It to its previous duties and could not be plans of the Scott Foundation were put on should conduct demonstrations of garden- called on any further. Help came from an hold for a very long time. Wister had fre- ing practices and publish complete reports outside force—the Depression. Just a year quently lamented the lack of labor available of the various plants being grown and test- after the stock-market crash, many people to him, and war conditions meant even ed. It should conduct research in all matters were losing their jobs, including workers at fewer man-hours for the arboretum. As a pertaining to the plants in its collections, the Victoria Plush Mills, adjacent to the Col- result, he began making the difficult deci- their botanical relationships, their cultiva- lege’s land on Crum Creek, which closed in sion to eliminate collections that needed the tion, and their improvement by selection or 1930. The Borough of Swarthmore raised most human attention. The first to go was plant breeding.” $500 for unemployment relief, the College the display bed of chrysanthemums between Carrying out the plans would require matched the figure, and two dozen men College Avenue and Worth Hall. It was fol- new staff, new facilities, new equipment, were put to work in the woods. As Wister lowed by the herbaceous plants in the presi- and large infusions of money. And there, as wrote, “They were pretty clumsy compared dent’s garden and in the rock wall at the always, was the rub. No one could have been to our own men but in the two and a half library. more horticulturally knowledgeable and dis- winters they literally transformed the dilapi- When the war was over, Wister—by now cerning or more dedicated to the Scott SWARTHMORECOLLEGEBULLETIN 16 more since 1953, appointed a committee to assess its future. Its report reaffirmed Arthur Scott’s original conception of the foundation as a force for horticultural edu- cation; recommended that Wister’s succes- sor be hired on a full-time basis; and, most important, put its money where its mouth was, allocating funds that nearly doubled the foundation’s endowment to $600,000. Wister would stay for another four years, making his tenure a round four decades. Under his successors—Joseph Oppe; Judith Zuk; and, since 1991, Claire Sawyers—the Scott Foundation became the Scott Arbore- tum, the new name more accurately describ- ing the campuswide horticultural showcase it had become. The endowment grew to some $20 million, providing post–Wister directors with the labor they needed to maintain it. Wister was able to witness some of these developments before his death in 1982, at age 95. The headline of his obituary in The Philadelphia Inquirer described him as “the dean of horticulture in the U.S.” The current arboretum is a tribute to his vision and dedication. But there is a more specific legacy. Soon after moving to his Swarthmore cottage, he subsequently recalled, he began to plant “particularly rare or precious or small plants that I was afraid to plant on the main campus where they are subject to theft, vandalism, power lawn mowers in careless hands, and ignorant laborers who might pull them up thinking THE TERRY WILD STUDIO they were weeds.” On joining the house- Foundation and to plants than was John A highlight of the postwar period was hold, Gertrude Wister added to the garden, Wister. But he was a shy man, more com- installation in 1958 of the Dean Bond Rose with special attention to daffodils (eventual- fortable at the typewriter and in the garden Garden, named after Elizabeth Powell Bond, ly obtaining more than 400 varieties), ferns, than with people—especially large groups of dean of women at Swarthmore from 1890 wild flowers, rock gardens, and rock wall people. The kind of growth he foresaw to 1906. It was designed by Gertrude Smith, plants. “We regard it not as a private garden would have required, essentially, a gregari- the assistant director of the foundation. but as the herbaceous section of the Scott ous fund-raiser and salesman. Wister was Two years later, she became the first wife of Foundation,” Wister wrote. “Visitors are not that person. John Wister, whom she had known for 26 always welcome.” Yet despite Wister’s shortcomings as a years and who was then 73. Mrs. Wister later Gertrude Wister remained in the house public personality, the Swarthmore campus, remarked, “It took him all that time to and cultivated the garden until her death in under his and his colleagues’ care, was decide he could take the plunge.” They 1998, at the age of 93. The house is now increasingly recognized as one of the loveli- moved into the cottage the College had built used as faculty quarters for the College, but, est in the country, if not the world. Some of for Wister in 1949, at the southern end of as far as the gardens are concerned, visitors the individual collections had developed campus, bordering on the Crum Woods. who can find them—either by wandering national and international reputations. Throughout the 1950s and early 1960s, in back of the athletics field or entering These included daffodils, irises, azaleas, in his annual reports and memoranda to through the driveway on Harvard Avenue— magnolias, lilacs, rhododendrons, and tree Swarthmore presidents, Wister gave vent to are still welcome. T peonies—always a special interest of Wis- his frustrations, most of which had to do ter’s. In 1948, The New York Times termed the with insufficient manpower. Finally, in Ben Yagoda is the author of The Scott Arbore- tree peony collection the “largest and best” 1964, the 35th anniversary of the founda- tum of Swarthmore College: The First 75 in the country. tion, Courtney Smith, president of Swarth- Years, from which this article is adapted. DECEMBER 2003 17 Sowing Seeds Sof Success

ERIC ADLER ’86 CO-FOUNDS ANINNER-CITYPUBLIC CHARTERBOARDINGSCHOOL.

By Elizabeth Redden ’05 Photographs by Claire Weiss ’03

he eighth-grade girls of “Swarthmore the girls’ energy and harness it for one final boarding school that Tatianna and her House” are restless. It’s time to go activity before they can all go home. Hutchi- friends attend. “When you look at our kids, Thome for the weekend, they say. son, the boarding instructor for Swarth- they’re loud and boisterous and sometimes Tatianna Green is singing Lumidee: “If you more House, asks the girls to fill out a “Pos- unrefined in their behavior, but they’re just want me to stay, I’ll never leave.” Chelia itive Affirmations” worksheet. “Twenty-five kids, you know?” He pauses, takes a bite of James picks up the beat, accompanying more minutes, then pizza, and you can go his fish filet sandwich. “And that’s how it Tatianna with claps. The room is exploding home,” she tells them, cheerful yet visibly should be.” with chatter. “Do you really think so-and-so exhausted. The SEED School is the first of its kind. is cute?” Ashley Muskelly asks. “Well, he’s “I like the way I feel when I do good in Based on the premise that many students better than the rest of ’em!” school,” Tatianna reads out loud from her from inner-city neighborhoods need a Two desks down, the topic of conversa- worksheet, her voice confident, strong, and secure, stable, and academically oriented tion is drastically different: “I got all As and indicative of the singer she dreams of residential environment to help them suc- Bs,” someone says. That, of course, stirs up becoming. “I know I will be successful in ceed, the school provides a tuition-free pub- a volley of responses. Progress reports came life because I will never put myself down.” lic boarding program for DC schoolchildren out today. It’s the weekend, grades are out, “I think that’s what I’m most proud of,” who would otherwise be in more traditional and these girls haven’t been home in two says Eric Adler ’86, co-founder of the inner-city public schools. Each year, rising weeks. It’s a recipe for unrest. Schools for Educational Evolution and seventh-grade students are selected for the Poor Lori Beth Hutchison is happy it’s Development (SEED) School of Washing- school via a lottery, for which there are usu- the weekend too, but she has to round up ton, D.C., the inner-city public charter ally three applicants for every student ran- SWARTHMORECOLLEGEBULLETIN 18 18 domly chosen. Those who attend commit to physics in Baltimore for eight years before “I know I will be what Adler terms a six-year college prepara- receiving an M.B.A. at Wharton. He then tory “mission.” went on to a high-profile, high-paying job “We talk about the college process really as a management consultant. successful in life from the moment they arrive,” Adler says. In the back of his mind, though, Adler College pennants adorn the walls of many was playing with the idea of a public board- because I will never of the classrooms; the halls are named after ing school that would service those students colleges attended by faculty members— most truly in need. While talking about it at “Yale House”; “West Point House”; and, of work one day, someone visiting from a spin- put myself down,” course, “Swarthmore House” are among off firm said he knew someone else who was them. Adler explains the SEED School thinking along the same lines: Rajiv Vin- Green says. attempts to form a residential community nakota, another management consultant. where college preparation and academic Vinnakota had actually taken a two-month

THESEEDSCHOOLISBASEDONTHEPREMISE success are accepted goals. leave of absence from his job to investigate possibilities for such a school. Adler called THAT MANY STUDENTS FROM INNER-CITY ewer than 10 years ago, Adler was on a him, and they arranged to meet for a fast- NEIGHBORHOODS NEED A SECURE, STABLE, AND Fcompletely different career path. A dou- food dinner. “We ended up staying for three ACADEMICALLYORIENTEDRESIDENTIAL ble major in economics and engineering at hours.” ENVIRONMENTINORDERTOSUCCEED. Swarthmore, Adler taught high school A month later, in February 1997,Adler DECEMBER 2003 19 and Vinnakota held a summit meeting in successful even though construction is now Washington. On just one Saturday, Adler, “These are the kids completed. Adler stresses that private funds Vinnakota, and several others who had are crucial to providing SEED students the expressed interest in the school met and who won’t get this type of “extras” many students in different planned it all out. Then on Sunday, they communities take for granted. came back and developed a business plan. kind of opportunity Each summer, students from the SEED The goal was to open the school in Septem- School can earn trips to Greece or Wyo- ber 1998. unless we give it to ming. About 30 students go hiking and “Raj and I were looking through this camping in Wyoming each summer; eight go board full of stuff that needed to get done them,” says Adler. to Greece. Pizza parties and trips to Six in the next year and a half, and I said, ‘Can Flags are rewards for good grades and we do it?’ ‘Yeah, yeah, we can do it, but it’ll behavior. The School has a Wish List on take two full-time people.’ I looked at him amazon.com to encourage donors to fill its and said, ‘Are you in?’ And he said, ‘Yeah.’ library shelves, and money will continue to The next day, we both went in and quit our be required for things like trips to the the- jobs.” ater and museums. “It’s the stuff that gives Adler and Vinnakota spent the next 16 kids great opportunities, like everyone else months working without pay to develop the has,” Adler says. school. The SEED School of Washington, D.C., opened on schedule, inviting its first ate Myers ’99, an eighth-grade reading class of 40 seventh-graders to live and learn Nteacher and cross-country coach for in the rented attic space of the Capital Chil- SEED, says the school is, in many ways, an dren’s Museum in September 1998. With no ideal place for a teacher with a social vision. buildings yet complete, it was the school’s “I continue to feel amazed about the temporary campus. resources and the idealism that has been marshaled here in the school.” oday, with the first class of seventh- “If this is urban education, it has a com- Tgraders completing its senior year—and pletely different feel.” the school at full capacity with 310 students Myers cites the SEED teachers as being in all six grades—the SEED School has particularly dedicated. Many faculty mem- been transformed. Two dormitories, an aca- bers, he says, work 13- or 14-hour days and demic building, and a student center now come in on Saturdays or Sundays to catch stand on the campus in southeastern Wash- up. SEED has gotten about 1,000 resumes ington. The student center, the last building each of the past two years, and the school completed, was just finished and contains a chooses from a national pool to find the gymnasium, weight room, recreation room, most dedicated and idealistic. multipurpose room, and cafeteria. Academi- “There are very few students who fall cally and residentially, the school boasts a into the cracks here. If anything, they get collection of resources that would be caught in the cracks and have a hard time unimaginable for most inner-city educators. adjusting to the high expectations of the ERICADLERLEFTACAREERINMANAGEMENT A half-million dollars’ worth of donated school,” Myers says. art adorns the walls. High-performance CONSULTINGTOCO-FOUNDTHESEEDSCHOOL “Everyone wants these kids to succeed so Gateway computers line the brightly lit labs WITH RAJIV VINNAKOTA. THE SCHOOL NOW HAS much.” and classrooms, the public living areas, and 310 STUDENTS IN GRADES 7 TO 12. are even in many of the older students’ t’s been quite a change for Katia Faunt- dorm rooms. Most of the computers are lows, towels, and accessories. Iroy, an aspiring eighth-grade singer from gifts from the Oprah Angel Network, which Public operating money for the school, Swarthmore House, who remembers feeling recognized Adler and Vinnakota with Oprah according to Adler, runs somewhere in the as though academics were completely unim- Winfrey’s “Use Your Life” Award in May ballpark of $7.5 million per year. Through portant at her previous school. “You could 2002. The Oprah Angel Network donated regular public school charter funding (see be the dumbest person in the world and still 300 computers—about one per student— sidebar) and additional public money added pass at my old school,” she says. “Here, plus beds, desks, and dressers for all 150 on top of that to support residential expens- you’re challenged.” students living in the school’s second dor- es, the school can sustain itself at capacity. It’s a difficult transition for many stu- mitory (opened in 2002). In addition, Gate- However, Adler says they have raised about dents, and not everyone meets the chal- way donated 150 printers, and Linens-N- $23 million through private donations, and lenge. Of the 40 students constituting the Things donated new sheets, comforters, pil- he hopes fund-raising efforts continue to be original class, only 21 are still at SEED for SWARTHMORECOLLEGEBULLETIN 20 W H Y C H A R T E R S C H O O L S ?

he charter school movement has Tboomed in the past decade, enjoy- ing bipartisan support and flexible leg- islation. Professor of Education Eva Tra- vers says about 40 states have approved charter school legislation since the mid-1990s, and each state has differing requirements for start-up charters. The basic premise behind charter schools, Travers explains, is to allow motivated individuals to open schools that create innovative curriculums and allow for greater teacher autonomy out- side of a bureaucratic system. “The

THE SCHOOL IS CHALLENGING. OF THE 40 STUDENTS CONSTITUTING THE ORIGINAL CLASS, ONLY 21 HAVE potential of charter schools is to let people who are so inclined bring MADE IT TO THEIR SENIOR YEAR. BUT ADLER SAYS ALMOST ALL OF THEM WILL ATTEND COLLEGE. together their progressive ideas about their senior year, according to Boarding Pro- his hopes of operating SEED schools in education.” gram Coordinator Shantelle Hughes. cities throughout the country. Sitting down, Charter schools therefore get public “This is difficult for these kids,” Adler shaking his chocolate milk, he repeats a funding, with less public oversight, in admits. “It really is. Being motivated at such story he has told many times. About two exchange for accountability: Under the a young age to undertake a mission that in years ago, he was giving a tour when a stu- “No Child Left Behind Law,” Travers the context of their lives and neighborhoods dent representative was asked about his says, charter school students must score might not make a whole lot of sense is, I summer plans. “I’m trying to get myself a well on state tests for schools to main- think, a pretty unique character trait.” job in Paris,” the student responded. tain their charters. Schools are required When looking at the kids who are thriv- “I just about fell over,” Adler says. Hav- to accept everyone who applies or hold ing, who sit in front of their very own Gate- ing spent three hours in Paris during a lay- a lottery for available spots if surplus way computers in their dorm rooms, who over on his flight back from Greece the pre- have their artwork plastered on the wall in vious summer, this student had decided it numbers apply, although Travers says a the front hallway, who spend part of their would be a nice place to return to the next common complaint about charter summer in Greece and read and write and year. schools is that they lack special educa- study within a network of similarly focused “Whether or not he actually got a sum- tion services and therefore restrict with- close friends, it’s difficult to imagine where mer job in Paris, the point is that he saw it out actively denying access to students they might be without a place like SEED. was out there, and that there would be ways with special needs. “If you walk into the public schools that for him to work there, and he decided to go Other complaints about charter most of these kids come from and would about it,” Adler says, his voice rising with schools are that they potentially create otherwise be in, it’s not a pretty sight,” excitement from a story that, for him, still more segregated communities, increase Adler says. hasn’t grown old. costs in terms of administration require- Of the 21 that are left of the original Looking around him at the cafeteria, ments, and do not always offer the class, Adler believes just about every one of with students from each grade level sitting types of innovative curricula they are them will attend college next year. with their teachers, being loud and noisy expected to provide in exchange for and, well, kids at school on a Friday, Adler is their greater autonomy. tanding in line for his lunch, Adler picks in his element. Sitting amid the kind of Travers describes the SEED School as Sup a tray with the SEED logo on it. He magical madness he helped make possible, a “unique charter school” and says the smiles broadly. “I love that. I love that. I quietly drinking his chocolate milk in the school has been thoughtful in its inno- have one at home. Founder’s privileges.” corner, Adler can’t imagine his life having vative boarding curriculum. “The SEED Looking at him, it’s impossible not to see taken any other course. “I really am lucky.” T School is the best possible use of the just how much he loves his job. The salad charter school idea—it takes advantage bar is, apparently, not at its best today; This is Elizabeth Redden’s fifth feature article for of having less regulation and allows its Director of Admissions Lesley Poole says it the Bulletin. She will be studying in Ecuador teachers to have more autonomy,” she usually includes raisins and other fixings during the spring semester. says. that just aren’t there on Fridays. Adler is not —E.R. concerned. He fills his tray and talks about DECEMBER 2003 21 FINDING

GROUND

ATSWARTHMORE,INTERNATIONAL EDUCATIONISSODIFFUSE—YETSO DEEPLYAPARTOFTHECURRICULUM ANDLIFEOFTHECOLLEGE—IT’SASIFIT WEREINTHECAMPUSAIRANDWATER.

By Tom Krattenmaker

ABOUTTHEPHOTOGRAPHS: AT THE REQUEST OF THE BULLETIN,INTERNA- TIONALSTUDENTSANDSTUDENTSWHOHADCOMPLETEDAFOREIGNSTUDY EXPERIENCE SUBMITTED NEARLY 100 PHOTOGRAPHS FOR THIS ARTICLE. THEYSHOWSWARTHMORESTUDENTSENCOUNTERINGPEOPLEANDCULTURES ON EVERY CONTINENT. EACH PHOTOGRAPH THAT WAS CHOSEN BY THE EDITORS FOR PUBLICATION IS LABELED WITH THE NAME OF THE STUDENT WHO SUBMITTED IT AND THE PLACE WHERE IT WAS TAKEN. SWARTHMORECOLLEGEBULLETIN 22 KATE PENROSE ʼ04, MOROCCO ANNA STRATTON ʼ04, INDIA CATHERINE CLARK ʼ04, FRANCE ʼ 04, VATICAN CITY LAURA CLARK

ondering the latest international news in this strife-torn tions,” Bloom says. “But they must also recognize the fundamental decade, Americans often struggle to divine something in com- commonalities we share—to become agents, through whatever Pmon between their lives and those of the people living in dis- careers they choose, of a more inclusive, united, and humane world.” tant, troubled places such as Iraq, North Korea, or the West Bank. Early in the second decade of Bloom’s presidency, Swarthmore is With religion, economic circumstances, political systems, and world- arguably more international than at any time in its history—inter- views so drastically different, to what could we possibly relate? Why, national in the composition and outlook of its faculty and student outside of threats to Americans’ safety, and why, given the seeming body, international in the scope and sophistication of a Semester intractability of global problems, should we even care? Abroad Program in which more than 40 percent of the students take As the president of Swarthmore, Alfred H. Bloom asks the Col- part, and, most important, international in the way it nourishes stu- lege community to see past the obvious divisions to all the small and dents’ intellectual and ethical growth inside and outside the class- large things that unite people around the globe—their common room. Swarthmore is reaching the point where an “international concern for family and friends, their hope for justice and a better education” is so diffuse—yet so deeply a part of the curriculum and future, their valuing of compassion and respect, their humor, their life of the College—it’s as if it were in the campus air and water. humanity. He is intent on ensuring that graduates of the College “The global perspective infuses so much of what happens on take their places in the world with the intellect, perspective, and campus,” says William R. Kenan Jr. Professor of Political Science commitment to see and act beyond the walls of division that are not Kenneth Sharpe, who teaches and writes about Latin America. “The as high or thick as they seem. faculty brings a distinct global perspective to the curriculum—even “Our students must respect and learn from diverse cultural tradi- in courses on American politics, for example. And on top of that, DECEMBER 2003 23 students are bringing this perspective back fessor of religion who speaks Arabic and with them after going off to study abroad.” teaches courses on Islam and Islamic cul- ture. “My first objective is to portray the “It’s easy to say o some extent, Swarthmore has long Islamic world as a humane world,” Kugle that we cannot been “international.” Even decades says, “to introduce it as a place that is popu- Tago, before the College had a Foreign lated by human beings because, in a way, Study Office, Asian Studies Program, and our news media and political leaders have bridge the the like, an international orientation per- dehumanized the whole region.” Recently, vaded the campus thanks to the many pro- Assistant Professor Farha Ghannam, who differences between fessors who had grown up abroad or had at teaches Middle Eastern culture, was least spent considerable time studying in appointed to a tenure-track position in cultures, that we other countries, primarily in Europe. “These anthropology. faculty members had a very cosmopolitan • A Semester Abroad Program that con- have nothing in view of the world, and they brought it with tinues to sprout new offshoots in countries them to the classroom,” says Steven Piker, a such as Poland and Ghana and in curricular common,” says member of the sociology/anthropology fac- areas from dance to theater to environmen- ulty since 1966 and director of the Foreign tal studies. The program is marked by an President Al Bloom. Study Office. Coupled with that has been a emphasis on a study abroad experience that long-standing quality in teaching foreign feeds and enriches the students’ coursework “What we are really languages and literatures. and research on their return for their senior From those historical roots have grown year. At a time when many U.S. colleges are trying to teach at the following: promoting foreign study programs with an emphasis on amenities and cultural and Swarthmore is • Formal programs in such areas as extracurricular experiences, as reported by Asian Studies, Francophone Studies, and the Wall Street Journal earlier this year, that we have the Chinese and Japanese languages as well Swarthmore is deepening the academic as an emerging program in Islamic Studies. rigor of its program and exploring the almost everything The latter was in the works before Sept. 11, addition of an international community 2001, but the terrorist attacks made the pro- service element. in common.” gram’s beginning in 2002 especially timely. • The less formal but consistent commit- One tangible result of that initiative was the ment to bringing the world to the Swarth- hiring of Scott Kugle ’91, an assistant pro- more classroom, whether the course is in lit-

AY JY PHOUN ʼ04, KENYA (PHOTO BY LIZ BALDWIN) MARC BOUCAI ʼ04 AND ANDY MEADE ʼ03, CZECH REPUBLIC (PHOTO BY HOFAN CHAU ʼ03; SUBMITTED BY MELINDA LEE ʼ04) 24 erature, the arts, economics, political sci- stand for something.” ment of world history, Burke notes, many ence, or virtually any other discipline. Facul- “Leaders of the 21st century,” Bloom who know of his work think that Khaldun ty members make it a routine practice to says, “must gain understanding of the tradi- had amazingly advanced ideas and that his challenge students not to settle for a sim- tions, economic and political conditions, relatively cosmopolitan and secular view of plistic understanding of issues but to do the cultures and languages of other peoples, if world history is not what many Westerners difficult work of wrestling with the realities they are to be successful in predicting the today would expect of a medieval Muslim and implications of living in a global world. international effects of policies and actions, scholar. and in shaping those policies and actions Having read Khaldun’s world history, The This progress at Swarthmore comes at a toward the realization of a more secure, pro- Muqadimmah, the class—primarily sopho- time of national concern over the adequacy ductive, and just world. And as part of that mores, juniors, and seniors—is probing his of international education in American learning they must come, as well, to under- theories to see which parts hold up and higher education. In October, the American stand the risks inherent in America not which don’t. Khaldun asserts that the evolu- Council on Education issued a report find- using its power and influence in ways that tion of a people leads them inevitably from ing that most institutions are falling short. motivate trust, inclusion, and common pur- barbarism to civilization—civilization “While some bright spots exist, U.S. higher pose. expressed in the development of “royal education institutions have a long way to go “I hope and believe,” Bloom adds, “that authority”—but Cara Angelotta ’05 spots a before all students graduate with interna- our students leave here with the ability and flaw. How does his theory explain places tional skills and knowledge,” the report’s resolve to become those very leaders.” that didn’t develop dynasties, such as sub- authors concluded. Saharan Africa? Don Swearer, for one, believes Swarth- right sunlight streams through the Good question, Burke says. Why would more is one of those bright spots. “America windows of Trotter 301 on the second Khaldun not account for these Africans? needs leaders and visionaries to enable it to Banniversary of the Sept. 11 attacks, as Gabriel Rogers ’05 blurts out the obvious play the role I believe it should play in the Associate Professor of History Tim Burke with a mock naïveté that makes everyone world,” says Swearer, the Charles and Harri- stokes the discussion. Burke has dubbed chuckle: “They’re black!” ett Cox McDowell Professor of Religion, this course—which examines attempts to So there you have it, Burke says. Khal- whose writing and teaching focus on Bud- write world histories—The Whole Enchila- dun, however enlightened he seems to us, dhism. “What we’re trying to do at Swarth- da: Debates in World History. His two operates with some clearly racist assump- more is prepare students to be the people dozen students have plenty to say about the tions. who put in the effort to develop a more historian they’ve been studying the past One student takes the line of thought a inclusive worldview, who appreciate plural- week, Ibn Khaldun, a Muslim scholar who step farther. Not only are the Africans black, ism without adopting a kind of ‘anything wrote in the 13th century. Although he’s not but they’re non-Islamic. To what extent, she goes’ relativism, and who ultimately learn to often included in accounts of the develop- wonders aloud, is Khaldun’s whole theory DECEMBER 2003 KATE PENROSE ʼ04, MOROCCO 25 BRIAN NOLAN ʼ05, TURKEY SPENCER PAINE ʼ04. GREECE Many Chances to Study Abroad ore and more Swarthmore students are taking advantage of the the rules and procedures by which Swarthmore students can gain Mopportunity to spend a semester studying abroad, often during credit for studying abroad and, more important, of improving the the junior year. Forty-three percent of the Class of 2003 undertook quality of their foreign study experiences. foreign study, in contrast with the roughly 15 to 20 percent figure Two key tenets have come to distinguish Swarthmore’s Semester for 1980s-era classes. Whereas most foreign study experiences were Abroad Program. One, the program enjoys the energetic involvement once in Western Europe, the sweep of locations is far wider today. and commitment of the faculty; tales abound of professors using European locations remain the most popular, but during the past five their legwork and international contacts to help pave the way for years, Swarthmore students have earned credit in more than 60 new study abroad opportunities, even if only one student is likely to countries, covering Africa, Asia, Australia and New Zealand, South benefit immediately. Second, the program emphasizes foreign study America, and the Middle East as well as Europe. experiences that feed directly into students’ major courses of study Foreign study is nothing new at Swarthmore. The College has and, in many cases, their senior thesis. operated its own program in Grenoble, France, since 1972 [see “What really characterizes the program,” Piker says, “is the “Grenoble Programs Turns 30,” December 2002 Bulletin] and has for degree to which it is meshed with the overall operation and life of many years participated in consortia that sponsor foreign study pro- the College.” grams with other colleges. (Among the foreign study consortia in The Semester Abroad Program is in one sense flexible and in which Swarthmore takes part today are International Sri Lanka Edu- another exacting, Piker says. Students can choose from more than cation Associated China Colleges, and Macalester/Pomona/Swarth- 100 recommended programs identified by the Foreign Study Office, more in Cape Town.) Through the 1980s, Swarthmore students had a but every one of them has been reviewed by Piker or another faculty short list of recognized programs from which they could choose. For member who is in the best position to judge its worthiness. those wishing to go beyond the confines of the list, faculty and Helping fuel the growth and health of the program has been a staff members guided students toward foreign study opportunities on policy in place since the early-1990s, allowing financial aid to follow an ad hoc basis. As noted in a brief history of foreign study written students abroad, which makes foreign study possible for roughly half in 1998, “Support was fragmentary, credit for study abroad was of the student body receiving need-based aid. problematical, and many or most students who studied aboard effec- As foreign study has developed and improved, the percentage of tively operated on their own while on leave from the College.” the student body studying abroad has more than doubled. Piker and No longer. A concerted effort to organize and increase foreign Bernard, do not really promote the program; they don’t need to. The study opportunities began in 1992 with the creation of the Foreign word of mouth of returning seniors is all the advertising the program Study Office and the appointment of Professor of Anthropology needs. “Almost all of them speak positively of their study abroad Steven Piker as its director and Rosa Bernard, now foreign study experiences,” Piker says, “and encourage others to avail themselves coordinator, as his assistant. In close coordination with others on of the opportunity.” the faculty, Piker leads an ongoing process of codifying and refining —T.K. SWARTHMORECOLLEGEBULLETIN 26 histories,” Burke explains later. “They don’t need to always see Western histories as a case of dead white men acting badly.”

istory is just one piece of the puzzle. Analysis and action on the global Hstage can require multiple dimen- sions of a liberal education—cultural, scien- tific, political, linguistic, social, and ethical. Noah Novogrodsky ’92, according to a for- mer professor and mentor, is a Swarthmore graduate who’s“putting the pieces together.” For Novogrodsky, director of the Interna- tional Human Rights Program at the Uni- versity of Toronto Law School, the pieces included courses in European and Latin American politics at Swarthmore, augment- ed by a semester abroad in France. The cur- rent “whole” is his leadership in a drive to apply international human rights law and principles to the fight against the HIV-AIDS pandemic. As reported in the Canadian ESTHER ZELEDON ʼ04, BRAZIL (PHOTO BY RICARDO OCAMPO ʼ05) press last summer, Novogrodsky is mobiliz- ing the legal community, including his Uni- informed by an Islam-centric worldview? to religion in shaping moral societies. versity of Toronto law students, to use the Burke follows her lead. “You could make the The discussion moves on to the civiliza- law and moral persuasion to help AIDS point,” he says, “that his entire theory tions that came after Khaldun’s time. His patients in Africa receive affordable drugs. explains only the history of Islam and noth- theories fare more poorly, Andrew Abdalian The obstacle faced by Novogrodsky is no ing else.… He’s trying to figure out a theory ’06 notes, when the main story line is no less formidable than international trade that explains the spread and sustainability longer about barbarians conquering and rules aimed at protecting pharmaceutical of Islam. But he abstracts that and says it’s developing civilizations but rather about civ- corporations. the way everything works.” ilizations in conflict with other civilized “I view the HIV-AIDS epidemic through But for all their apparent weaknesses, people. And whereas Khaldun saw people human rights terms and not simply as a fail- Khaldun’s theories about the way people organizing themselves around blood ties, ure of medical science to contain the epi- organize themselves do seem to apply how could he account for a place like the demic,” says Novogrodsky, who after beyond his own time and place. Burke asks United States that comes together around Swarthmore pursued graduate studies at his students to think of other histories that shared ideas? Pluralism, Burke notes, just Cambridge University and received a law mesh with Khaldun. The Mongols in China, could not occur to Khaldun. degree from Yale. “To me, it’s really quite a student offers. The Mings as well, adds her Time is up, and the students stream into obvious that tens of thousands of people classmate. Burke agrees, as he does with the hallway. shouldn’t be dying every month in Africa another suggestion that the theory also No one has expressed surprise that some who could otherwise be treated with drugs applies to ancient Egypt. of the most advanced 13th-century theories that are affordable and could be produced in But Sonya Hoo ’05 is more interested in of history would originate from the Islamic greater quantities—but that don’t reach the other histories that Khaldun’s work does not world. Burke would have been slightly patients who need them.” explain. Why doesn’t Khaldun’s work dis- shocked if anyone had. By the time they’ve He is a dual citizen of Canada and the cuss the Greeks and Romans, given that he progressed past their first year, most United States, but Novogrodsky’s mission knows so much about them? The omission Swarthmore students have shed the some- transcends his nationalities. “Along with my is telling, Burke agrees, given Khaldun’s what American- and Western-centric students, what I’m trying to do as an inter- obvious knowledge of classical texts, and notions they developed from the media and national human rights lawyer is identify the difficult to explain if one looks to only Khal- their high school courses; if anything, Burke areas of real indignity in the world and use dun’s own writing for the answer. But he says, they swing too far to the opposite pole. the law creatively to address those prob- points out that Khaldun was only one of By helping them recognize the limits of lems,” he says. several Muslim thinkers—and Christian Khaldun’s theories, Burke demonstrates that Kenneth Sharpe, his former professor, thinkers, for that matter—to have trouble Westerners aren’t the only ones to write remembers Novogrodsky well. “Noah took a discussing the ethical and theological world histories with cultural blinders on. lot of Latin American politics courses. He sophistication of Greece and Rome, given “I’m trying to get them to ask whether traveled a lot. Since he left here, he has put the importance that monotheists assigned there is a universal problem writing universal all the pieces together,” Sharpe says. “I DECEMBER 2003 27 Whether they’re in Germany, Ecuador, or Botswana, Swarthmore students are building bridges when they spend a semester studying abroad. And traffic flows both ways across bridges. LAURA CLARK ʼ04, VATICAN CITY

think that’s just what a lot of our students pharmaceutical companies while making it Ghana are found at Swarthmore, because do after Swarthmore. They put together the easier for poor countries to access affordable more and more of Swarthmore is turning up pieces they began to collect here.” drugs for AIDS and other life-threatening in Ghana. Since serving as a visiting profes- Another Swarthmore graduate who is illnesses. In a statement to the Bulletin, sor in 1997 at Ghana’s International Center working the puzzle—although from a decid- Zoellick hailed the agreement for achieving for African Music and Dance, Friedler has edly different political perspective from “a constructive balance that ensures access been creating new study abroad opportuni- Novogrodsky—is U.S. Trade Representative to medicines by those most in need while ties for Swarthmore students in the sub- Robert Zoellick ’75. The Bush administra- not undermining intellectual property rights Saharan African nation. In the past two tion official is known for both his multilat- that foster research and development.” For school years, four students have studied eralist approach and his sophisticated grasp his part, Novogrodsky was not completely dance and music with leading artists and of international trade issues. As one col- satisfied but conceded, “It’s a start.” practitioners in Ghana. In so doing, accord- league told Institutional Investor magazine, Whatever the issue or the politics ing to Friedler, they have experienced noth- “Zoellick is usually the smartest, best-read, involved, it’s never a surprise to Novogrod- ing short of a new way of seeing the world. and best-prepared person in the room.” sky when his career path crosses that of a Friedler believes that to learn the music In his writing and public comments, fellow Swarthmorean working on the inter- and dance of a people is to learn something Zoellick has advanced trade as fuel for a national stage. bigger about their history, values, and char- healthy international economy and thus as a “The liberal arts ideal as defined and acter. “That’s particularly true in Africa,” she hedge against terrorism. “Open markets are implemented by Swarthmore transcends says, “because the dance and music are so vital for developing nations, many of them boundaries and borders. I think it equips central to the culture. The dominant ethnic fragile democracies that rely on the interna- people for living in—and being effective cit- languages in Ghana are tonal, and the lin- tional economy to overcome poverty and izens in—a multicultural, globalized world,” guistic patterns are rhythmic. So we can create opportunity,” he says. “Societies that he says. “In a host of ways, a Swarthmore actually say something by drumming it out. fragment, that are poor, that have no sense education is an international education.” If you’re using different pitches on the of hope become fertile grounds in which ter- drums and the listener is linguistically rorists can burrow. So all of us have a stake here is unmistakable passion in sophisticated, [he or she] can begin to deci- in development, in democracy, in openness, Sharon Friedler’s voice as the dance pher what you’re trying to communicate.” hope, and opportunity.” Tprofessor tells a visitor about Swarth- Although playing the atumpan does not In a partial victory for HIV patients more’s growing programs in Ghana. Friedler steer a college student onto the fast track for around the globe, the Zoellick-headed U.S. is seated in her office in the Lang Perform- mainstream careers in America, in Friedler’s Trade Office in August negotiated a World ing Arts Center, surrounded by a small view it’s preparation for something less tan- Trade Organization agreement that provid- orchestra’s worth of Ghanaian musical gible but far more profound: leadership in ed some protection for the patent rights of instruments. It’s fitting that these pieces of the enterprise of bringing cultures together. SWARTHMORECOLLEGEBULLETIN 28 RICARDO OCAMPO ʼ05, BRAZIL GRACE APPIAH ʼ04, SPAIN

“We’re trying to create bridges,” she says. 50-page thesis to defend both in Ghana and not only of their own country’s power and “We are trying to create communities of back at Swarthmore. potential but of its limitations, its depend- understanding—dancing communities, “Our program places equal emphasis on ence on other countries, and its ability to music communities, writing communities, the learning obtained by the student and on benefit from the wisdom of others. education communities.” the good that the student does abroad,” “Foreign study,” he says, “helps impor- Traffic flows both ways across bridges, Everbach says. “The notion here is that the tantly to develop the foundation for in- which is why Swarthmore’s Semester thesis is well written, well argued, and well formed global citizenship and responsibility.” Abroad Program increasingly emphasizes defended, and that it winds up on the desk To Sharon Friedler, being more and students’ giving as well as taking. In a new of the minister of environment of Ghana.” more international is an enterprise that res- wrinkle in the Ghana program, Swarthmore Another program is following much the onates with the College’s history, mission, students will teach computer skills to same model in Poland. Since 1999, Swarth- and Quaker ideals. Whether they’re doing Ghanaian children. Also under way is an more’s Theater and Dance programs have the work in Germany, Ecuador, or Bots- effort to use the College’s audio-video equip- been forging a strong relationship with the wana, Friedler believes Swarthmore stu- ment to help preserve the African country’s vanguard of the performing arts there. Stu- dents are “building bridges” when they cultural heritage. Students under Friedler’s dents attend classes at two leading Polish spend the semester studying abroad. direction are transferring hundreds of hours universities and undertake residencies with “I think that it is very deeply the work of of performance footage—now on videocas- the Silesian Dance Theater, a professional peace. Like many others, I have been ap- settes at Ghana’s music and dance center— company that has, in turn, given perform- palled and saddened by much of what has to DVD, a more stable digital format. ances and workshops on the Swarthmore happened in the world during the past few Applied learning is also a theme of campus (see “Steps of Change,” December years. And there’s not a lot that I can do Swarthmore’s new environmental studies 1999 Bulletin). about it. However, I can go to another coun- initiative in Ghana. Launching next year Engineering students may also study in try and teach dance, or facilitate students under the direction of Associate Professor of Poland, focusing largely on environmental going to Ghana, or facilitate the creation of Engineering Carr Everbach, the program is issues. Twenty students have spent a semes- DVDs so that traditional African cultural aiming to place its first students in Ghana ter or more in Poland since the inception of material are archived. All those are acts of to study environmental issues facing the the programs, and a new initiative may add peacemaking. And that we can do.” T country and develop practical solutions. a service component to the College’s pres- Everbach describes the students’ experience ence in Poland. Tom Krattenmaker is the College’s director of as a “mini-honors seminar.” Each partici- President Bloom sees that living and news and information. His freelance writing has pant will begin with classroom study before studying in another country—and learning appeared in Salon, the Minneapolis Star Trib- moving onto a field project under a Ghana- other languages—are experiences that une Sunday Magazine, and The Philadelphia ian mentor and, in the end, writing a 35- to sharpen young Americans’ understanding Inquirer. DECEMBER 2003 29 SWARTHMORECOLLEGEBULLETIN 30 Aurora Camacho de Schmidt often teaches poetry in her Spanish classes T h i n k as a way of getting to the heart of another culture.

o one consciously prepares students to be global citizens, and Nno course or department can bear that burden. I hope the G l o b a l , College as a whole does that. Part of the vocation of the College is to prepare students to be in the world and to do so with a sense of social responsibility. The United States has an amazing capacity to absorb foreign- T e a c h ness, and American culture is exposed to foreign cultures and peo- ples constantly. The country’s very inception has its roots in for- eignness, including people forcefully brought to this land. Yet U.S. culture has a way of erasing difference. We all feel and see in a vari- ety of arenas how difference is ignored or eradicated. L o c a l Literature and language by their very nature introduce a foreign culture. Poetry, which I always include in my classes, allows us to INTHEIROWNWORDS,FIVE reach for meanings wider than the ones closer to us. When stu- FACULTYMEMBERSREVEAL dents are immersed in literature from another land, they are HOWSWARTHMOREPREPARES exposed to a double otherness. It is a wider reality by definition. STUDENTSTOPARTICIPATE Some students will try to reduce that reality to terms that are famil- INAGLOBALSOCIETY— iar to them. Other students will begin to integrate what they dis- ANDHOWTHEYEMBODY cover in literature and what they find in other classes. When that happens, it’s just a wonderful thing. THATIDEALTHEMSELVES. In the Modern Languages Department, we insist that our stu- dents go abroad. Spending a semester in another country lets the reality of that culture sink in. When students come back, they think in a very different way. They have more internal resources. When students go abroad, they have a lot to learn, and they also have a lot to unlearn. A good part of our education is unlearning. Poetry itself can be a foreign country. It scares students some- times, and they may say they don’t like it or understand it. Once they try, they love it. In my Introduction to Latin American Litera- ture, they respond by writing it. They discover they can write poetry!

“We must ask ourselves this question: What does it mean for a young person to be a student in one of the best colleges in the most powerful country in the world?”

Interviews by Alisa Giardinelli Photographs by Eleftherios Kostans DECEMBER 2003 31 It is difficult to explain the kind of effect hegemony—military, economic, political, poetry can have. It’s comparable to music. It even cultural—for the United States. Stephen Golub, takes us out of the environment where the Because of that power, preparing North fresh from a sabbatical in France, encourages students to see the rhythm of life is dictated by everyday needs, Americans to be global citizens is not the positive aspects of globalization. like homework and going to the library. In same as preparing students from any other poetry, all those things cease to matter, and country. It would be tragic to let our stu- lobalization is certainly a controversial we are free. Students find new meanings dents graduate without the capacity to exer- Gsubject. It tends to elicit extreme posi- and are often delighted and challenged by cise not only critical thinking but self-criti- tions on both sides. And it does have an where the poem takes them. cal thinking. They must understand their underside to it. There are losers from global- Literary production in Latin America— own position and social responsibility as ization. There are people in the United poems, essays, novels, chronicles—is often citizens of the United States, where deci- States, for example, who can lose their jobs political because the region has a long histo- sions are made every day that affect the or have to take reductions in pay. That ry of struggle against internal and external quality of life in every corner of the earth. applies to all sorts of countries. In my opin- forces of oppression and because its very I hope our graduates learn to recognize ion, though, a lot of people misunderstand existence is based on the cataclysmic con- the other side of globalization, the invisible the implications of globalization and tend quests of the 16th century. Some of that lit- forces of hope in the organization of immi- to blame globalization for anything that erature may be very critical of the United grant workers the world over, or the strug- goes wrong. There are a lot of changes tak- States or simply display values that are dif- gles for human rights at home and abroad, ing place in our society, but globalization is ferent from the values of a liberal democra- the movements to abolish torture and the by no means responsible for all of the ills. cy. It is healthy for our students to learn death penalty, the efforts to stamp out seg- One of the biggest misunderstandings, that. regation, the antiwar movement. I want to for example, is Third World poverty. Any- We must ask ourselves this question: think that teaching language and literature body who’s been to a Third World country What does it mean for a young person to be is part of that tall order. That is my hope realizes just how terrible the poverty is a student in one of the best colleges in the and my wager. there. If they have a very unsophisticated most powerful country in the world? Global- Aurora Camacho de Schmidt is associate understanding of it, they think that some- ization means an unprecedented level of professor of Spanish. how this is something new, and the world

“There are a lot of changes taking place in our society, but globalization is by no means responsible for all of the ills.” SWARTHMORECOLLEGEBULLETIN 32 economy is to blame for it. In fact, poverty is a very long-standing problem in these coun- tries, a very deeply entrenched problem. Globalization is more part of the solution than part of the problem. There’s a certain amount of naïveté about globalization. Students really don’t know that much about it before studying it, and sometimes they have knee-jerk negative reactions. For example, one thing that cre- ates a lot of controversy is whether Nike exploits workers. A lot of students are quite outraged when I try to explain that it’s not so simple. Nike creates jobs in these coun- tries that may be better than what they could have been otherwise. Some students are sympathetic to that view. It always elicits a very lively class discussion. Our students are sponges for knowledge. They may not know a lot about the world at first, but by the time students come out of my international economics seminar, I like to think they really understand what’s hap- pening in the global economy. They leave with methods of analysis and can really con- ceptualize some of these issues. For example, do we want McDonald’s supplanting all the restaurants in France? I just spent a year there, and there’s not too much danger of that. There are plenty of “Plants coexist in a shared environment. McDonald’s in France, but there are still plenty of good French restaurants, too. So If we behave more like plants, maybe we will they can live side by side. Sometimes, people be more successful at coexistence.” exaggerate this cultural imperialism. It is a real phenomenon, and countries do have to make an effort to preserve their indigenous cultures, but I think globalization can thrive off diversity, too. If you don’t have your local José-Luis Machado, nectivity of air, land, and water. I always try culture, local foods, and so on, you’re not a forest ecologist,teaches students to make clear to my students that an action going to be a very interesting tourist desti- about the jewel in their backyard— here will have an effect elsewhere. The nation. So there are incentives for countries the Crum Woods. Sahara Desert affects climate here. That just to maintain their cultural diversity. blows their minds. I’ve always been interested in issues of efore coming to Swarthmore, I was an My real passion is to understand how economic development and what the eco- Bassociate professor of biology in plants grow and interact with each other. I nomic relationships are between the United Bogotá. I wanted to stay in Colombia, but it tend to be obnoxious about what they can States and other countries. It’s a bit of a didn’t work out. I realized it was too danger- teach us. Plants coexist in a shared environ- cliché, but economics is supposed to help ous and constraining to do fieldwork or go ment. If we behave like plants, we will be alleviate problems of poverty, and certainly out on fieldtrips with my students. So I left more successful at coexisting. It’s simplistic problems in other countries are very severe. my country and taught my first class at (and maybe even arrogant to suggest), but To me, economics isn’t about pure theory, Swarthmore in fall 2001. plants have developed a strategy to limit although there is a lot of theory in econom- The value of individual species and the themselves instead of trying to limit their ics. It’s what economics can say about the role they play in the community of the forest neighbors. That way—unlike humans—they real world, and nowhere is that more impor- is what my teaching is about. Students can get the most out of the environment’s tant than at the international level. take that knowledge anywhere in the world shared resources. Stephen Golub, who grew up in France, is and apply it. The other big thing is sustainability. professor of economics. In my classes, I emphasize the intercon- What limits population growth? One thing DECEMBER 2003 33 is resources—we can run out of food. Tradi- “Students are sometimes my personal background. tional economic principles operate with uncomfortable when For me, globalization means being a part supply always driven by demand. But nature of a larger global community. It’s important is not endless. Our class moves around this they realize they are to provide a larger sense of the world to stu- issue. a part of a certain dents, regardless of where they come from. I My research work can’t be done without historical narrative.” want them to be aware of the history of students. For example, as part of my ecology their place in the world and what they can class, we collect leaf fall in the woods. I’m do to make it more just. At graduation, Pres- going through my third year of data, trying ident Al Bloom urged Swarthmore students to understand how much each species pro- to be responsible citizens in the world after duces. A doctor can weigh a person every college. I hope my courses play their part in year. It’s such a simple idea, but weighing a that project. tree is a little more challenging. In all kinds of ways, I try to generate in- Students can hardly tell the Crum teraction and conversations in my courses. Woods were man-made now because the I teach through literature and film but in an trees are not ordered. But back in the 1930s, interdisciplinary way, using history, anthro- [John] Wister [the first director of The Scott pology, and sociology. We weave a lot Arboretum—see page 12] planted over between current events and past history. For 100,000 trees—almost 60 native species! me, it’s a way of engaging the written word It’s cool to show the students that the to make it alive, not dead or past. woods are a 75-year-old experiment and still Some of my freshmen students have going. never read non-American authors. Now, as a The Crum is a jewel. Some students, result of imperialism, English literature is a even seniors, have never been there. People global literature, and English is being rede- think forests around urban areas are ugly fined by non-Western writers. It’s exciting. and not pristine. In 2001, we went out there The students see how much you can play in the fall before it got cold. After some rain, with language and use it to reflect the pres- the water evaporated, and it was humid. ent and the past. Someone asked, “How different is this from You can’t think of colonialism as being a rainforest?” Great question. I told them over because it continues to have an effect that with the water dripping from the trees on the present. In my Nations and Migra- and that earthy smell, there is no difference. tion class, we examine colonialism, post- “Give us a break,” they said. But this is how colonial society, and its impact on writers in it would feel. Of course, there are different English from places such as the Caribbean, animals, but for a moment, they can have a Middle East, South Africa, Ireland, and Sri similar appreciation for the place. Lanka. In each conversation, students Another project is the study of invasive invariably link issues to current affairs and species. Where do these plants come from? news articles. Abroad! I’m looking at a species of Japanese In my upper-level Asian American litera- knotweed and also the Norway maple. Both ture seminar, I try to situate the literary were brought here as ornamental plantings. texts, novels, and films in conversation with Now, one is taking over the banks of the U.S. foreign policy in Asia. When we read Crum, and one is taking over the forest. Bakirathi Mani Korean American writers, we look at the I want to make these woods visible and blends literature written in English Korean War. When we read Vietnamese get them the respect they deserve. The with history and contemporary American writers, we look not just at the forests are the planet’s lungs. I’m not mak- politics to teach a broader war but also at Vietnam’s colonization by ing it up. It’s a little romantic, but nothing perspective. the French. And South Asian Americans, for else produces oxygen. Maybe the students ’m Indian and was born in Bombay, but I example, bring to life the history of British are reassured because they know I’ve seen Igrew up and was educated at an interna- colonialism on the subcontinent. Looking at and been to other places. I try to show tional school in Tokyo. After studying inter- the present circumstances pulls out the his- them, and I truly believe, the woods are an national relations at Georgetown and colo- torical narrative behind these texts. important piece of land. Ultimately, I’m a nial history in India, I wrote a dissertation Sometimes I have students who ask, forester. I do see the forest for the trees. at Stanford on issues of immigration and “What are my stories? I don’t have anything José-Luis Machado is assistant professor of social and cultural identity, especially among to say.” I do think everyone has a story biology. South Asian immigrants in the United about [his or her] life that’s fascinating. States. So my own research is reflective of Even if you live in one place, your personal SWARTHMORECOLLEGEBULLETIN 34 history is defined by your parents and is Still, I make sure I teach a course every teach changes, how you address people part of a larger global history. year outside my normal fields of expertise— changes. It makes your culture richer. Many Students are sometimes uncomfortable usually something on Latin America. In that of my colleagues, American as apple pie, when they realize they are a part of a certain course, I focus on issues dealt with in phi- convey an appreciation of different cultures historical narrative. But history matters. It’s losophy, literature, theology, and history— to their students. There’s still a long way to all about who you are right now. History is in other words, it’s broader than just sociol- go, but a large segment of the faculty does not just in the past, but it also shapes the ogy and anthropology. Next semester, for this. future and how you’re going to be. It’s also example, the class will be Latin American Our students are taught to learn. They about making decisions in a responsible society and culture. For it, I’m bringing a are always encountering cultures that are manner from now on. Students can’t help historian and administrator from Peru who quite strange and unfamiliar to them, and but notice how the world is changing even will address current issues in Peruvian poli- they are not put off and intimidated by that. while they’re in the classroom. Through lit- tics. In introductory courses, many students They are taught to confront and work erature and history and current events—the have never been exposed to such perspec- through these differences and be prepared past and the future—we try to make sense tives. to engage unknown positions, no matter of it. When you are able to incorporate ele- where they might be. Bakirathi Mani is assistant professor of Eng- ments of different cultures into your world- Braulio Muñoz is Eugene M. Lang Research lish literature. view, your worldview changes, the way you Professor of Sociology. T

Braulio Muñoz, born in Peru and a scholar of European and American social theory, embodies the complexity of the modern world.

s a senior Hispanic member of the fac- Aulty, most students see me as a repre- sentative of a culture different from middle- class America. Yet my training is as a theo- rist, and my work centers on European and American social theory. Hispanic students see me doing some- thing mainstream—not something pegged to a specific position because of my ethnic origin. Maybe equally important, there’s a lot of benefit for non-Hispanic students to find faculty members competent in multiple traditions. The more universal you are, the better you are for students. It breaks down stereotypes because they could see them- selves like that. When I came to this country in 1968 from Peru, I came to study physics. I then turned to philosophy, and I ended up in sociology. But I didn’t first read Marx in German, I read it in Spanish. In Peru, I was a student leader, a labor leader, and a journalist. Those experiences, although not consciously, influence me, as “When you are able to incorporate elements much as I’m influenced by being at Swarth- of different cultures into more for 26 years. I am not active in politics anymore. But I can’t help but be a political your worldview, your worldview changes.” person. None of us can. So I write fiction in which I address issues of politics and iden- tity. If I think there’s an area I need to express outside my professional work, it comes out in fiction. DECEMBER 2003 35 F o r e i g n S t u d y i n R e v e rr s e

FOR MORE THAN ONE IN 10 SWARTHMORE STUDENTS, THE UNITEDSTATES ISTHEFOREIGNCOUNTRY.

By Andrea Jarrell Photographs by George Widman

’m going to study in Germany ple from different cultures, you cannot next semester,” says Yijun Li ’05 Amid a national internalize the facility to see past superficial of Shanghai. “It’s just going to differences.” make me more globalized.” climate of more Bringing international students to Emmanuelle Gounot ’04,who Swarthmore is not new—the College has was born and raised in Paris, stringent restrictions deliberately sought foreign students for agrees that “a cosmopolitan decades. And the number of alumni—both worldview on campus is as Americans and internationals—holding key much a part of a Swarthmore education as on students from positions throughout the world is testament books and classes.” She says this interna- to the fact that Swarthmore has always edu- tionalI perspective comes as much from cated its students for world leadership. But abroad, Swarthmore American students as from those who are increasing the presence of international stu- foreign born. “By nature, students here are dents is all the more critical today. not U.S.-centric. They are curious about is doing something “We have made substantial progress in alternative ways of thinking through a ensuring the representation of American critical and analytical reading of the world. very Swarthmorean— diversity within our student body, our facul- It’s not only international. It’s very Swarth- ty, and curriculum—an effort that it is morean.” intentionally imperative to continue, but we must also That’s just how President Alfred H. broaden the scope of that effort so that we Bloom hopes it will be. He says students experience and understand American diver- must develop international perspective if globalizing. sity in the context of the global diversity of they are to take leadership in a global world. which we are all part,” Bloom says. And he believes having international diver- So, amid a national climate of more sity on campus is essential to gaining that stringent requirements on visa applications perspective. “Unless you have the experi- by students from abroad and the recent U.S. ence of developing relationships with peo- Supreme Court cases challenging affirma- SWARTHMORECOLLEGEBULLETIN 36 36 INTERNATIONALSTUDENTSMAKE UP ABOUT 7 PERCENT OF THE STUDENT BODY. INTERVIEWED FOR THISARTICLEWERE(CLOCKWISEFROM LOWERRIGHT) MILOS ILAK ’04 (YUGOSLAVIA), YIJUN LI ’05 (CHINA), TAFADZWA MUGUWE ’05 (ZIMBABWE), DORU GAVRIL ’05 (ROMANIA), AND GERALD TAN ’04 (MALAYSIA). tive action, Swarthmore is doing something ment Jessica Bell, the selectivity is stagger- very Swarthmorean—intentionally “global- ing. “Swarthmore gives you izing.” Adding to the problem is the current cap “This is about appreciating both the dif- on financial aid for foreign students at 10 an international ferences that separate us and the common- percent of the College’s financial aid budget. alities of intellect, emotion, concern, and Bloom would love to extend need-blind education. I don’t purpose that must bind us,” says Bloom. admissions to foreign students, but he notes that it is a question of trade-offs. The funds Staggering Selectivity to accomplish that goal would have to come really think my identity International students, including U.S. citi- at the cost of other priorities. zens and permanent residents living abroad, During the 2003–2004 admissions as a person is with make up 11 percent of Swarthmore’s total cycle, Bell will travel to 12 countries on three student body. “They are among our strong- continents. Bell and Associate Dean of Ad- est students,” says Bloom, “because we have missions Amin Abdul-Malik work with any particular country. the whole world from which to recruit.” Dean of Admissions and Financial Aid With worldwide recruitment, however, come James Bock ’90 and the rest of the admis- You might say, challenges in what is an already intense sions team to determine to which countries admissions landscape. Last year, 670 inter- they will travel each year. Contributing to national students applied, approximately their decision is the goal of international I have become 580 of whom were seeking financial aid. diversity within each class as well as the Ultimately, the College enrolled 22 non-U.S. presence of alumni volunteers in certain a ‘global citizen.’” citizen first-year students, 14 of whom areas. The Admissions Office annually sur- received need-based aid. Additionally, 16 veys alumni worldwide to ask for assistance —Gerald Tan ’04, Malaysia overseas U.S. citizens and permanent resi- in order to reach out to the College’s poten- dents were aided. With those kinds of num- tial applicants across the globe through countries sometime in the future. bers, says Director of International Recruit- alumni interviews and college fair programs. No matter where in the world Bell trav- Alumni admissions els, it is likely that U.S. News & World Report’s volunteers will be “America’s Best Colleges” has been there representing Swarth- before her. Indeed, Milos Ilak ’04,a more at college fairs Yugoslav native who attended high school this fall in Tokyo, in Bulgaria, says that he and his friends had Hong Kong, Istanbul, memorized the top rankings by the time London, and Paris. they were in 10th grade. Although it seems This year, the difficult to imagine, he believes that the U.S. Admissions Office News guide may be more popular abroad will focus on Latin than it is in the United States. Romanian America and Western Doru Gavril ’05 says the rankings were Europe, which are “more of a confidence-building thing,” reas- relatively underrepre- suring him that he had made the right deci- sented at Swarth- sion in selecting Swarthmore. “I had no more compared with institutional help in the form of a counselor many Far and Near or adviser guiding me. I found Swarthmore Eastern countries through the rankings but then did my own and Eastern Euro- Web research to find out what Swarthmore pean countries. was really about.” The research paid off. Although the Middle “What attracted me is something that has East is not currently remained quite important to the way I on the travel sched- have been spending my time ever since I ule, Abdul-Malik, the arrived—public service,” he says. College’s first Muslim Despite Swarthmore’s international rep- admissions officer, utation and top U.S. News ranking, Bell says may travel to Gulf the first step in her international admis-

JESSICA BELL IS THE COLLEGE’S DIRECTOR OF INTERNATIONAL RECRUITMENT. THIS YEAR, SHE WILL TRAVEL TO 12 COUNTRIES ON THREE CONTINENTS TO SPREAD THE WORD ABOUT THE LIBERAL ARTS AT SWARTHMORE. SWARTHMORECOLLEGEBULLETIN 38 ASSOCIATE DEAN OF ADMISSIONS AMIN ABDUL-MALIK IS THE FIRST MUSLIM TO WORKINTHEADMISSIONSOFFICEASASTUDENTRECRUITER. sions presentations is often to explain the “So it’s a risk to say, American liberal arts college system, one ‘OK. I’m going to go that is unique in the world and sometimes to Swarthmore for misunderstood. She tells the story of a four years and will Moroccan student who was offered a spot at not be guaranteed a Swarthmore and for whom Swarthmore was place in medical her first choice. But her parents insisted she school.’ Whereas if I attend a university. “They worried for her had gone to school at future career prospects once she returned to home, I would have Morocco, where many high schools are gone straight into called ‘colleges,’ and it is universities that medical school.” are for higher learning,” explains Bell. Gavril agrees that, For some international students, one of at a certain level, every the most convincing arguments for choos- international student ing a liberal arts college rather than their who comes to Swarth- home university system is the opportunity more takes a risk. for breadth and exploration rather than “Swarthmore tells you early specialization. In his Zimbabwean it’s a risk, but they high school, Tafadzwa Muguwe ’05 was on a also tell you if you trajectory to medical school when he heard think you can do it, about a program through the U.S. Embassy you should give it a that would sponsor, he says modestly, “two shot.” Gavril says he so-called gifted students to study as under- arrived with “the graduates in the United States.” It was the mind-set of Eastern program officer at the embassy, who, while Europe—let’s do eco- helping Muguwe with his applications, told nomics because eco- him about Swarthmore. nomics has to do with Muguwe still plans to go to medical building the economy and, essentially, with War testimony of Deputy Secretary of school, but he credits his Swarthmore expe- money. That’s a mind-set one loses within Defense Paul Wolfowitz. “That’s a fantastic rience with opening him up to interests about the first 14 hours of being at Swarth- thing,” he says. “But it’s also a risk to beyond science that he never suspected he more.” Gavril quickly found his interest in embark on a career of service in American had and, more important, with helping him economics shifting to a “passion for Ameri- politics when you don’t even have citizen- discover that being a doctor really is what he can politics.” In Kohlberg Coffee Bar, ship. I’m literally starting from scratch.” wants to do. “In addition to my classes, hunched over the Washington wires, he Each fall, when President Bloom meets Swarthmore has prepared and encouraged says: “When I go to my classes in politics, I with Swarthmore’s new international stu- me to participate in two undergraduate lean forward. It’s just a thrill.” dents to welcome them, he acknowledges summer programs in U.S. medical schools, “I think it’s very important to emphasize the risk Muguwe and Gavril mention—the both of which have broadened my knowl- the kind of opportunities that one gets courage it takes to move out of one’s own edge of the field and enabled me to really when one comes to Swarthmore,” says educational background into a different think about what I want to get into,” he Gavril. “This isn’t just an ordinary foreign educational world and to take on that says. “These programs have also given me study experience. This is a system that per- world’s challenges. He also enlists them in the opportunity to meet people who are mits a foreign student like me with zero “the burden of helping the College to inter- going to be very instrumental in my future.” background in politics except a couple of nationalize.” But Gerald Tan ’04 of semesters in theory to have hands-on Malaysia, who also studied at Oxford during “Fantastic” Risk immersion at the top levels of government. a Swarthmore semester abroad, sees that Although Muguwe says Swarthmore has That’s a fantastic thing.” During Gavril’s effort as reciprocal. “Swarthmore really gives helped him to be a very good candidate for time at Swarthmore, he has worked with you an international education. I don’t really medical school, he acknowledges that it was Rep. Robert Brady (D–Pa.) during two ses- think my identity as a person is with any a risk to give up the guarantee of his Zim- sions of Congress, working on a position particular country. You might say, I have babwean trajectory. “The United States is paper on the North Korean nuclear crisis become a ‘global citizen.’” T very accommodating in taking international and the Medicare Prescription Drug and students into medical programs,” he says, Modernization Act of 2003 as well as assist- Andrea Jarrell is a freelance writer based in but medical school slots are not assured. ing the staff on preparing to hear the Iraq Bethesda, Md. DECEMBER 2003 39 CONNECTIONS

com or (610) 604-0669. Shickele’s perform- ance is the annual Peter Gram Swing Lec- ture, and admission is free. BOSTON

San Francisco: This revitalized Connection M I L S

is off to a terrific start. Close to 200 alumni, T E D New York: Barry Schwartz, Dorwin P. family, and friends from the classes of ’44 to Cartwright Professor of Social Theory and ’03 attended the launch picnic in Septem- Social Action, will speak to the New York ber. Special thanks to Stacey Bearden ’99, Connection on Thursday, Feb. 5, at the God- Seth Brenzel ’94, and Misha Neverov ’97 for dard Riverside Community Center on the organizing the picnic. An event with the Pig topic “The Paradox of Choice: Why More Is Iron Theatre Company and a faculty mem- Less.” If you are interested in attending, ber followed soon after the picnic. contact New York Connection Chair Lisa Tucson, Ariz.: Jeff Lott, editor of the Swarth- Ginsburg ’97 at [email protected] by more College Bulletin, will visit Tucson on Feb. 2, 2004. Watch your mail in January for Jan. 21 to discuss the evolution of the maga- further details. zine and how its content reflects Swarth- Philadelphia: The Philadelphia Connection more’s changes. The event will be hosted by will attend a performance titled “I Gotta Laura Markowitz ’85. If you are interested in Sing to Write the Blues” by Peter Schickele attending, contact Laura at LMarkowitz@- ’57 at the Lang Concert Hall on campus on aol.com or (520) 990-9582. All alumni, April 26, 2004, beginning at 4:30 p.m. If family, and friends are welcome to attend; you are interested in attending, please con- please watch your mail for an invitation. NEW YORK tact Jim Moskowitz ’88 at [email protected]

ALUMNI CONNECTIONS: Faculty Take to the Road CHANGING OF THE GUARD WE ARE FORTUNATE to have had the FACULTY SPEAKERS make for Computer Science Lisa guidance of National Connection very popular Connections Meeden crossed the coun- Chair Don Fujihira ’69 for more than events. This fall saw a true try to touch base with a decade. Don began his Connection test of Boston-area alumni alumni in San Francisco; involvement as New York Connection loyalty when Associate William R. Kenan Jr., Pro- chair and created hundreds of events Professor of Physics fessor Emerita of Art His- for alumni while serving in that posi- Michael Brown’s lecture tory T. Kaori Kitao spoke

tion. As National Connection Chair, came into competition BROWN MEEDEN at the Santa Monica Don was responsible for overseeing all with Game 7 of the Ameri- Museum of Art; Assistant of the Swarthmore Connections and can League play-offs. “We Professor of Astronomy for fostering their growth. Don has were delighted that 65 Eric Jensen stayed closer shepherded the Connections organiza- people came out for the to home and lectured in tions from their infancy, and we are talk. Some hurried home Washington, D.C.; and grateful for his efforts. after the question-and- Scheuer Family Professor Don has decided to step down, and answer session; others Emeritus of Philosophy Barbara Sieck Taylor ’75 has agreed to stayed at the reception for Hugh Lacey went south to WANG JENSEN become National Connection Chair. another hour,” said Lisa Austin, Texas. She served as Pittsburgh Connection Lee ’81, director of alumni relations. “I enjoyed meeting with alums both co-chair for two years. Barbara will In fall 2003, six faculty members visited recent and not so recent at my talk,” said work closely with the Alumni Support six cities to bring a bit of Swarthmore to Brown. “There was a lot of discussion about Working Group of the Alumni Council alumni. Assistant Professor of Statistics my talk, including some excellent questions to continue to expand the growth of Steve Wang visited Chicago; Associate Pro- about the sun and our experiments. I found Connections. fessor of Physics Michael Brown spoke to that there is tremendous interest in the sta- alumni in Boston; Associate Professor of tus of the new science center on campus.” SWARTHMORECOLLEGEBULLETIN 40 REUNION A L U M N I C O L L E G E A B R O A D 2 0 0 4 Plans are well under way for Alumni Week- The Hidden end, June 4 to 6, 2004. Reunion classes that graduated in years ending with a 4 or 9 (and the Class of 2002) are special guests this year. This year’s reunion chairs, who are reland working to make reunion happen for their classmates, are the following: A SEARCH FOR 1934 Ned and Louise TREASURES OF Stubbs Williams I 1939 Robert Peelle (acting) HISTORY AND ART 1944 Dorrie Morrell Leader 1949 Chris Pederson FROM THE STONE Maralyn Orbison Gillespie Sara-Page Merritt White AGE TO THE 1954 Bruce Gould 1959 John Gillmor THIRD MILLENNIUM 1964 Jed Rakoff 1969 Paul Peelle 1974 George Roache SEPT. 12–26, 2004 ANDREA PALMIERI 1979 Brenda Perkins Andy Schultz THE HIDDEN IRELAND will explore parts of the country—West and North—that 1984 Colette Mull Swarthmore travelers have not hitherto visited together. It will also return to some Michael Dreyer favorite sites like Dingle Peninsula, the Burren, and Dublin City, which are inex- 1989 Lee Fineman haustible in their charms. Our route will take us through the remote, unspoiled land- Kelley Meagher scape of Connemara, Mayo, and Donegal and will include extensive forays into the Six Counties from Fermanagh in the West to Down in the East. 1994 Sarah Adams Although a major focus will be the superb stone culture, 1999 Andrew Caffrey which began in Neolithic times and developed into the Ashwin Rao artistry of the early Christian oratories, the high crosses, 2002 Lisa Jenkins Romanesque figure carving, medieval folk art, and contempo- rary sculpture, we will also explore out-of-the-way places to DO YOU KNOW find examples of the modern Irish genius expressed in the AN UNSUNG HERO? stained glass of Harry Clarke, the painting of Jack Yeats, and MANY SWARTHMORE ALUMNI dedicate them- the flourishing traditions of weavers and potters from Done- selves to volunteer activities of all kinds gal to Kerry. Near Belfast and in Dublin, we will visit muse- throughout their lives. In 1997,the Alumni ums that bring together past and present and help us to Council decided to recognize such an understand the dynamic achievements of the Hidden Ireland. “everyday hero” at reunion, and the Arabella Professor Emerita Helen North, a noted classicist, will lead Carter Award was created. The award is our foray into Ireland. Teacher, scholar, and author, Professor intended to honor alumni who have made North has received numerous awards and grants for research significant contributions as volunteers in HELEN NORTH and travel in the Mediterranean world. For many years, she their own communities or on a regional or has also made annual visits to Ireland, living in small villages and exploring the back of national level. Arabella Carter, who lived in beyond. She has lectured at the Yeats Summer School in Sligo; has been awarded an the early 1900s, was one of the great honorary degree by Trinity College, Dublin; and with Mary North has written two unsung workers for peace and social justice guidebooks to Irish prehistoric sites, some of which we will visit. The Hidden Ireland in the Philadelphia Yearly Meeting. will be her 14th Alumni College Abroad. If you know such a person, please con- tact the Alumni Office at (610) 328-8402 For a complete itinerary and registration information, please visit our Web site at and request an award nomination, or visit www.swarthmore.edu/alumni_abroad.html. You may also request this information from http://www.swarthmore.edu/alumni/arabel- Edda Ehrke at (800) 451-4321. This year, we will mail brochures only to those who request la_form.htm to nominate on-line . them rather than sending brochures to all alumni. DECEMBER 2003 41 42 SWARTHMORECOLLEGEBULLETIN S E T O N S S A L C t h e

m e s a w n i a n g r

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h m o r Inspir e hypoieisiainadguidance. and inspiration provide day, they this To style. and methods my pedagogic develop own to on drawn I’ve models the been have professors Swarthmore My Williams. with Art Medieval Rhys, with Painting and Drawing in Design Rawson, with physiology Neuro- North, with Translation in Literature Greek Meinkoth, with Zoology Invertebrate Hynes, with Literature English Hoffman, with Literature American Beardsley, with Aesthetics teachers: the from inseparable are subjects the classrooms, Swarthmore in educational experiences best the on back think I When ation epeUiest colo Medicine of School University Temple BnetLre,MD ’64 M.D. Lorber, —Bennett

ELEFTHERIOS KOSTANS BOOKS&ARTS

with—and for those to whom toleration The Nature and is a fundamental value, that means the intolerant. Limits of Tolerance Tolerance, broadly speaking, is what keeps majority rule from becoming majority THECONFLICTBETWEEN tyranny. It may be said to consist of both SECULARANDULTRAORTHODOX formal rights, such as in the Bill of Rights, JEWSRAISESPERPLEXING and equally important, a more amorphous ISSUESABOUTLIBERALISM. attitude of respect for or decency toward minorities. However, when the disagreement Noah Efron ’82, Real Jews, Basic Books, is as deep as that between the tolerant and 2003 the intolerant, that disagreement is likely to spill over into what constitutes respect and ou don’t have to be Jewish to love Levy’s decency. Are we respectful of the ultraortho- YRye Bread,” said the subway ad featuring dox if we visit their neighborhoods in mini- a picture of an African American biting into skirts or drive through their neighborhoods a slice when I was a kid. And you don’t have on the Sabbath? And how about if we to be Jewish or Israeli to love this beautifully encourage ultraorthodox women to seek accessible and extremely interesting discus- equality? The problem here reminds one of sion of the conflict between secular and the issue of female circumcision or the scarf ultraorthodox Jews in Israel. Although Noah The challenge is to many Arab women cover their faces with: Is Efron’s subject is the form and intensity of the tolerant stance to eliminate or defend this particular conflict and its relation to deal with those you these traditional practices? Whether or not Zionism, the issues raised are of consider- we tolerate the intolerant, we seem to be able generality and of concern to anyone most disagree with— intolerant ourselves. interested in the nature and limits of toler- This, of course, is an issue wherever tra- ance—or the conflict between tradition and and for those to ditional cultures find themselves in conflict modernity. with modern “liberal” ones, and that is all The ultraorthodox are a relatively small whom toleration is a over the Third World. One thing that is minority that has disproportionate (to their especially intriguing in the Israeli case is numbers) political and social leverage in fundamental value, that the ultraorthodox Jews, who are the Israel. This power takes numerous forms: “traditional” culture here, inherit with their Their young men typically are not drafted that means the tradition 2,000 years of experience in fight- and do not fight in the army, buses in most ing cultural imperialism without sovereignty cities do not run on Saturday, most eating intolerant. or arms. If anyone can resist liberal assimila- establishments find it an economic necessity tion, it is likely to be them. to be kosher and therefore to pay consider- and Judaism in particular. And for me, the It is not uncommon for American liberals able amounts to have inspectors guarantee most striking of these are the problems that (e.g., the eminent political philosopher John that they are, and ultraorthodox religious arise from the “illiberal” character of the Rawls), after expounding the nature, virtue, institutions such as schools are heavily sub- ultraorthodox. Ideologically, the ultraortho- and limits of toleration, to talk about the sidized. These practices raise issues that are dox have no interest in the state of Israel. sad fact that even when taken to its limits, it simultaneously similar to and different from Practically, they have a great interest. The cannot sustain all “legitimate” minority cul- the American context: similar because, as a result is that there is at least the suspicion tures. The implication seems to be that if democracy, Israel is quite similar to America that their use of the liberal and democratic some of these cultures disappear, that is but different because, as a self-proclaimed institutions is completely instrumental and simply too bad but should not be of undue “Jewish” state, it is unlike America. After all, manipulative. This is characteristic of “intol- concern to us. Could liberals take that atti- American liberals can claim to be “value erant” movements, such as the communist tude if their own culture was at stake? neutral” in at least one sense that support- movement in the middle of the previous Certainly, Israeli liberals do not. Fearful ers of a Jewish state certainly cannot. century and contemporary Nazi movements, (justifiably or not) of becoming such an For me, the most interesting aspects of and it raises the most difficult issues for a endangered minority, they are prepared, Real Jews are those that illuminate America liberal democracy. The challenge for tolera- informally at least, to consider shockingly and modernity in general as well as Israel tion is to deal with those you most disagree drastic responses reminiscent of the excess- SWARTHMORECOLLEGEBULLETIN 50 es of traditional anti-Semitism. How Peter Cohan ’79, Value Leadership: The 7 much consolation can minority cul- Principles That Drive Corporate Value in tures take from “toleration,” given the Any Economy, Jossey-Bass, 2003. power of the liberals and this discrep- Renowned management and invest- ancy between their attitude toward ment expert Peter Cohan—whose 2002 their own culture and that of others? stock selections gained 81 percent when Aside from Israel, this issue is being the S&P 500 plunged 24 percent— played out in the conflict between the offers executives seven management ultraorthodox Muslims and the more principles that were tested in periods of liberal in Iran. economic expansion and contraction. And as American influence around the world becomes even stronger, this Allan Gibbard ’63, Thinking How to Live, problem takes another form: If a peo- Harvard University Press, 2003. ple is not inclined to our version of Focusing on judgments that express tolerance, as in, say, Iraq, can and decisions, the author argues for recon- should we bring about majority rule? sidering—and reconfiguring—ques- In addition to the perplexing issues tions of “ought” and “is.” raised, Efron gives an interesting per- Paul Berg and Maxine (Frank) Singer spective on Israeli life generally. Most THIS “PSYCHEDELIC” FABRIC DESIGN FROM 1968 IS ONE ’52, George Beadle: An Uncommon of us have learned about Israel in the OF MORE THAN 1,000 COUNTERCULTURAL RELICS CATA- Farmer—The Emergence of Genetics in the context of certain standard stories: war 20th Century, Cold Spring Harbor with the Arabs, making the desert LOGED BY COLLECTIBLES EXPERT GARY MOSS ’70 IN HIPPIE ARTIFACTS (SCHIFFER PUBLISHING, 2003). THE BOOK IS A Laboratory Press, 2003. In this first bloom, accepting the homeless Jews of biography of George Beadle, a Nobel TRIPDOWNMEMORYLANEFORBABYBOOMERS—ANDA Europe, oppressing (or not) the Prize–winning scientist, the authors Palestineans. This conflict between the GUIDETORARITYANDPRICINGFORCOLLECTORS. explore his life and accomplishments in secular and ultraorthodox is a new the context of classical and the new window on Israel for most of us. It is a genetics. window that opens on a landscape, which, Austin, professor of technology and opera- for Efron, is defined by the question, “What tions management at Harvard Business Mary Solberg ’68 et al., Healing by Heart: is a Jewish state?” But for the wider com- School, and Lee Devin, professor emeritus Clinical and Ethical Case Stories of Hmong munity, it raises the question, “What values of theater at Swarthmore, introduce a col- Families and Western Providers, Vanderbilt other than the purely pragmatic can a mod- laborative model for strategy formation, University Press, 2003. This book describes ern liberal institution such as the state (or product development, and other business the health-related beliefs, practices, and val- college) sustain?” Ultimately, this question activities. ues of the Hmong and includes photo- is more important than the question of Rebecca Bushnell ’74, Green Desire: graphs of traditional healing methods. Arab-Israeli relations—not just for Israel, Imagining Early Modern English Gardens, but for the whole world. Elizabeth Varon ’85, Southern Lady, Yankee Cornell University Press, 2003. This book —Rich Schuldenfrei Spy, Oxford University Press, 2003. This describes the innovative design of the early Professor of Philosophy story is about Elizabeth Van Lew, who gardening manuals, examining how writers defied the conventions of the 19th-century and printers marketed them as fiction and South by running a spy ring that helped OTHER BOOKS practical advice for aspiring gardeners. scores of Union soldiers to escape from Margery Post Abbott ’67,Mary Ellen John Byers ’70, Built for Speed: A Year in the prison. (Grafflin) Chijioke ’67, Pink Dandelion, Life of Pronghorn, Harvard University Press, Duncan Ferguson and William Weston ’82, and John William Oliver Jr., Historical 2003. In this book about North America’s eds., Called to Teach: The Vocation of the Dictionary of the Friends (Quakers), fastest mammal, Byers observes the prong- Presbyterian Educator, Geneva Press, 2003. Scarecrow Press, Maryland, 2003. This horn’s life from birth to death. These essays explore how the calling to book, covering terms such as abolition and Jacqueline Carey ’76, The Crossley Baby, teach in higher education—a primary mis- peace and offering biographies of William sion of the Presbyterian church—is lived Penn and Francisco Tintaya, provides a Ballantine Books, New York, 2003. The author of Good Gossip and The Other Family out today. William Weston , Leading From glimpse into the changing nature of the Center: Strengthening the Pillars of the Friends. as well as articles for magazines including The New Yorker, Jacqueline Carey has written Church, Geneva Press, 2003. Sociologist Rob Austin ’84 and Lee Devin, Artful a novel about the rivalry, grudges, and abid- William Weston examines the Presbyterian Making: What Managers Need to Know About ing love of three sisters living in New York Church (U.S.A.) and the tensions that exist How Artists Work, Prentice Hall, 2003. Rob City during the 1980s. between key groups in the denomination. DECEMBER 2003 51 PROFILE

Small Virus, Big Idea

HARRIET LATHAM ROBINSON ’59 ISALEADERINTHESEARCHFOR ANAIDSVACCINE.

pioneer in the field of DNA vaccinology, AHarriet Robinson has emerged as one of the leading figures in the search for an effec- tive HIV/AIDS vaccine. As chief of microbi- ology and immunology at Emory Universi- ty’sYerkes National Primate Research Cen- ter, Robinson has led research efforts on one of the more promising vaccines to date. WALT HULTGREN, YERKES PHOTOGRAPHER Robinson explains that the vaccine, now ROBINSON AND HER COLLEAGUES AT EMORY UNIVERSITY’S YERKES NATIONAL PRIMATE RESEARCH CENTER in the first stage of clinical testing, has DEVELOPED A PROMISING HIV/AIDS VACCINE, CURRENTLY IN THE FIRST STAGE OF CLINICAL TESTING. “been remarkably effective in monkey mod- els.” Yet, Robinson knows scientists are still a while away from achieving a licensed vaccine has demonstrated its effectiveness 1965 and has served on boards for the human vaccine. But she joins the rest of the over a longer period than other vaccines cur- National Institutes of Health, the World world in hoping the Yerkes vaccine proves rently in testing. Additionally, the Yerkes Health Organization, and the Food and itself effective in human trials—which, she vaccine, unlike others in development, has Drug Administration. She has authored or estimates optimistically, will not be complete been shown to “protect animals of all tissue co-authored about 200 articles and is chair- for at least another five years. types.” man of the Scientific Advisory Board of “Everyone’sclimbing Mt. Everest now, Other leading vaccines include those cur- GeoVax Inc., a company founded for the but we’re only at base camp two at creating a rently being tested by Merck & Co. Inc. and application of DNA vaccine technology to vaccine,” Robinson says. Aventis Pasteur. As reported by the Interna- humans. She spends most of her free time In a trial begun in 1999, two dozen rhe- tional AIDS Vaccine Initiative, Merck and with her family—her father, now 95, her sus macaque monkeys were injected with the Aventis have recently combined their indi- three sons, and her two grandchildren. She experimental vaccine at three different vidual vaccines to determine if the combina- enjoys traveling and has been all over the times. After a seven-month period—far tion of the two may be more effective. The world, including Asia, Africa, South Ameri- longer than the period used in many com- Merck and Aventis vaccines are, Robinson ca, and Australia. For now, though, Robin- peting HIV vaccine studies—the monkeys says, “the only products that I consider truly son is intent on staying right where she is. were challenged with an infection. Of the 24 ahead of us.” “Right now,I need to be in the lab,” she says. test monkeys, 23 survive today and are The Yerkes AIDS vaccine uses the DNA “You have to be at the helm to miss the reefs.” entirely healthy with intact immune sys- vaccination technology Robinson helped So Robinson remains at work, keeping tems. These monkeys, Robinson says, have pioneer in the early ’90s. In this technology, her eye on a microscopic technology that no symptoms of AIDS and contain only the desired immunogens, or the substances could potentially alter the world on a scale extremely low levels of the virus—levels that that produce immunity, are inserted directly millions of times magnified. HIV, she are hypothesized to be below that necessary into small pieces of DNA. These pieces are explains, is an extremely small virus, con- for transmission. Of the six control mon- then amplified in bacteria, purified, and taining nine genes compared with the 200 keys, on the other hand, five have died. The injected into an animal model. The DNA in smallpox—“Yet, it’smanaging to cause remaining one has lost its CD4 helper cells, vaccine is followed with an attenuated such devastation to humans.” The smallness a characteristic symptom of AIDS. The arti- smallpox vaccine that further boosts the of the virus—but the intensity of its cle reporting the results of the study, pub- immune response. destructive power—is a paradox that Robin- lished in 2001 in Science, has since be- Hovering above this microworld is son deals with daily, as she continues to come “a most cited paper in immunology,” Robinson, today one of the more recogniza- work on a solution to a problem that reaches says Robinson. ble figures in immunology. Robinson levels of global significance far greater than “Our vaccine has the best preclinical received a Ph.D. in microbiology from the HIV’sscant nine genes would ever suggest. data,” she explains, citing that the Yerkes Massachusetts Institute of Technology in —Elizabeth Redden ’05 DECEMBER 2003 59 work revealed that melanocytes are hard- PROFILE wired to resist normal triggers of cell death, and this wiring appears to link cell survival to the pigmentation pathway. The fact that melanocytes are more resistant to cell death Exciting yet makes evolutionary sense because they need to produce pigments that protect the skin Humbling from ultraviolet rays, says Fisher. However, this anti-death mechanism also appears to ONCOLOGIST DAVID FISHER ’79 render melanoma cells particularly difficult CONFRONTSCLINICALAND to kill with chemotherapy. Mechanistic dis- SCIENTIFICCHALLENGESTO coveries such as this have helped tp explain HELPYOUNGCANCERVICTIMS. clinical behavior of melanoma and, more important, suggest new therapeutic strate- n David Fisher’soffice desk stands a gies to combat the disease. Fisher’slab has Ophotograph of a jubilant young man also made discoveries of fundamental crossing the finish line of the New York importance in a variety of pediatric cancers, Marathon. The picture was taken on the including a form of kidney tumor whose 10th anniversary of the man’sbone marrow molecular basis his lab recently elucidated. transplant, and he was a patient of Fisher, Working with cancer victims is not currently associate professor of pediatric always easy, yet Fisher says he would never oncology at Harvard University and the want to give up clinical medicine. “Since I Dana Farber Cancer Institute (DFCI). was a little kid, I wanted to be a doctor. I A Harvard faculty member for 10 years, COURTESY OF DAVID FISHER enjoy being in a position to help. Oncolo- Fisher “plopped” into pediatrics, when, FISHER (CENTER) TREASURES HIS LASTING COL- gists, even in the most difficult situations, after being trained and board certified in LEGE FRIENDSHIPS WITH FACULTY MEMBERS SUCH can provide an unbelievable amount of both adult oncology, he did a six-month stint at emotional and physical comfort as well as Boston Children’sHospital and “loved it.” AS ISAAC H. CLOTHIER JR. PROFESSOR EMERITUS information. I wouldn’t give it up for the Now, he divides his time between laboratory OF BIOLOGY ROBERT SAVAGE AND PROFESSOR OF world.” Furthermore, not only does seeing research on molecular oncology at the DFCI BIOLOGY SCOTT GILBERT, HIS FIRST GRADUATE patients stimulate ideas for research direc- and clinical work, seeing some adult STUDENT GAËL MCGILL ’95 (LEFT) AND POSTDOC- tions but also, he says, overall, pediatric can- patients but serving mainly as an attending TORAL STUDENT ANDREW WAGNER ’89 (RIGHT), cers are much more successfully treated and physician at Children’sHospital and the AND HIS CLASSMATE ANDREW SCHWARTZ. cured than most adult cancers.“The children prestigious Jimmy Fund Clinic, where chil- are leading the way to the cure,” Fisher says. dren with cancer are brought from all over Of his career, Fisher says: “You’re like an the world for treatment. He also teaches was offered the chairmanship of pediatric explorer out there. You’re almost like a kid courses at both Harvard University and the oncology at another major university, a $2 playing games—taking incomplete clues and Harvard Medical School—including a class million endowed investigatorship at DFCI trying to piece together answers. That’swhat of 100 graduate students—and is adviser to as a motivation for him to stay. research is like, and, to a certain extent, it’s undergraduate biochemistry majors and These days, because of the demands of even what clinical medicine is like. If it pediatric oncology clinical fellows at Chil- work and family, Fisher’smusical activities weren’t, we wouldn’t need doctors. It’svery dren’sHospital and DFCI. have been curtailed, although he still man- exciting yet tremendously humbling.” He In 1979, when Fisher graduated from ages to squeeze into his packed schedule five says that moving between the two worlds of Swarthmore with a major in biology and or six concerts a year and musical moments clinical and laboratory medicine provides a chemistry, he simultaneously received a with his family—Yale alumna, radiation marvelous synergy: “In clinical medicine, diploma in cello from the Curtis Institute of oncologist, and pianist wife Claire Fung and you can have rewards that are immediate. Music and went on to become a cellist of their four children, ages 2 to 13, the oldest You give a pill, and a pain goes away, and international reputation, performing under three of whom play musical instruments. that’sa thrill. But then, you have the impedi- maestros such as Eugene Ormandy, Zubin Fisher’smedical research focuses on ments that can be insurmountable, the dis- Mehta, and Ricardo Muti in locations such mechanisms that regulate gene expression ease that no drugs can cure. In a lab, it’srela- as Carnegie Hall, Washington Kennedy Cen- in a variety of cells, including pigment cells tively uncommon to get a short-term major ter, and the Philadelphia Academy of Music. of the skin (melanocytes) and their tumors boost—experiments are slow and complicat- He has received numerous awards and hon- (melanoma). One recent project in his lab ed—but it has the potential for having a ors—both musical and medical—including was carried out largely by Gaël McGill ’95, tremendous impact in the long run. It’svery first prize in the 1983 Artists International who graduated with highest honors in biolo- rewarding to be in the fortunate position of Music Competition; a Harvard faculty award gy from Swarthmore, then obtained a Ph.D. being able to do both.” for teaching in 1999; and, in 2000, when he as a graduate student in Fisher’slab. His —Carol Brévart-Demm SWARTHMORECOLLEGEBULLETIN 66 INMYLIFE Y o u C a n G o H o m e A g a i n : A Y e a r i n S e o u l

ANADOPTEERETURNSTOHERORIGINS INKOREA.

By Kunya Scarborough Des Jardins ’89

he first time I remember eating a persimmon, I had just start- concrete high rises in Korea's most densely populated city. My first ed graduate school in Boston. My friend, Vostina, had taken few weeks in Seoul, I discovered a growing community of returning Tme to Haymarket where cheap produce, probably a few days adoptees from cities around the world. It is estimated that more old, is sold. Milling about the stalls, I picked up something I didn't than 200,000 Korean infants and children were adopted outside recognize. I wasn't sure whether it was a fruit or a vegetable—it Korea from the time of the Korean War to the early 1990s. Many of looked like an orange tomato, but a little less squat, pointier at the us came to America, but now there is a slow backward migration. bottom, and flatter on top where a pale green cap shaped like a dried I did not return to Korea to search for my birth family; I didn't dogwood flower sat. When I got home, I wasn't sure how to think it was possible to find them. Perhaps more important, I was at approach it—whether to slice, quarter, core, or peel it. When I tasted a point in my life where I needed to look for myself more than for it though, I experienced a strange moment of intense visceral famil- them. I had been to Korea 10 years before, for a “motherland" tour iarity—a humble version of Proust's madeleine dipped in tea. I knew with my adopted sisters and a group of adoptees. The trip was not this fruit tasted like “home." well thought out, and there was no mention of anyone's thoughts or Memory is a strange thing. My remembered life began at feelings about returning to our country of birth. We went to the Kennedy airport in September 1971 at age 5, when I was adopted by usual tourist traps—the Korean Folk Village and the ancient capital an American family. I don't actually remember my arrival—instead, I of “The Land of the Morning Calm." This time, I was returning to have photos and stories that have been told and retold to me, and live in the country, not to visit. I was hoping to integrate the cut-off they add up to something like a memory. But I didn't have any pho- foreign past with the known present, one that had become too busy tos or anyone to recount my life in Korea before coming to the and unconscious. United States. And I soon lost the language that encoded the mem- My first weeks in Seoul, I was tearful, lonely, and isolated. People ories I might have had. There were a few things, though, that I would start speaking to me without realizing I couldn't understand passed on to my mother once I learned to speak English. I told her them, until—in the only Korean phrase I knew perfectly—I let them that I had many brothers, that my birth father coughed a lot, and know I couldn't speak their language. that one brother had also come on the plane with me. Growing up After my first semester teaching at Hong Ik University, my moth- in suburban Pennsylvania, however, I would forget that I was Asian er came to visit me in Korea. My mother had never been to this and was never really sure whether I had given my mother “facts" or country where her three adopted daughters had been born. She some kind of confabulated logic produced to make sense of my earli- wanted to go to Korean Social Services, the agency that had er years. Maybe the “brothers" were really children in the orphan- processed our adoptions, and where we had all lived for a short time age; maybe I had mistaken another child for my brother on the

plane. (TOP) IN 1971, KUNYA (LOWERMIDDLE) WASPHOTOGRAPHEDWITHHERFIVE The persimmon is ubiquitous in Asia; in Korea, it is called kam. In fall 1999, when I returned to Korea to teach English for a year, I BROTHERSANDBIRTHMOTHER.RIENVANDERMEULEN,HERBIRTHBROTHER noticed the persimmon trees that lined the hurried streets of Seoul. WHO WAS ADOPTED IN THE NETHERLANDS, IS NEXT TO KUNYA (RIGHT). The small trees, with their deep green, waxy leaves and smooth, firm orange fruit were perfect and beautiful—in dramatic contrast to the KUNYA WITH HER HUSBAND, ANDREW, AND THEIR BABY, KEATON SWARTHMORECOLLEGEBULLETIN 70 AMY RADER PHOTOGRAPHER © 2003 family." birth “Ms. your stating, found e-mail have an we received Jardins, I Des later, Ik, months Hong of at couple teaching A still matter. while that the assured into were look but would file agency the the were from We anything information. copy no to was permitted there not that believed Oct. had estimated I date So, “birth 1966." 3, and Kunsan," in found be to “presumed unknown," father “birth unknown," mother of “birth side stated English years record The 10 anything. my agency mentioned this never to had been they had and and I earlier, parents." names birth the your are of those “Yes, dates agreed, birth who this worker pointed social I the dates. to to birth out and and words names some liked out looked write sound what or to recognize read enough not up could picked I folder had that the I fact Korean, of the side Despite Korean time. the first at the looked for I but English, before. in years written 28 been parents my to sent gym me jungle of and pictures set first swing the same in the found see to amazed August were sweltering we the heat, In finalized. were emigrations our before er flowing. tears apple, dried a like face her out, running came woman little a a to house, up pulled car the As h oilwre addw ie edse eoewa had what before seen We'd file. a down laid worker social The hti a iet etm it aiy mnvrsr o to how sure never am I family, birth my meet to me like ask was people it less When what much husband. has my it meeting dramatic, than is significance family daily birth my Although university. meeting same of the story at the teaching been had who Cod Cape tears. in skepti- assembled my the dissolved joined That I Korea. and to cism, back Pennsylvania them in of agency photos sister sent the had here?" that doing idea parents no my had I'd were wondered. “What I guard. off United caught the Social was in Korean I parents States; to adoptive sent my were showed I photos and Other One brother family. Services. my birth day my the was on this taken that photos. was sure some wasn't out I them, brought saw she together, I floor Until intense the an on with sat house we dried the as a into grip; like me face pulled her She out, flowing. running tears came apple, up woman pulled little car a house, the a As me. to to familiar looked Nothing anything. nized then, and educated, be to America return. to presumably, younger go my both that would mother I I birth but and my one, brother told last had the agency be The would not. I was that vain, in hoped, had They name, like end." Korean sounded typical it a because not part, is in which came, name, They smoker. my and that drinker me heavy to like a explained and, time, man, the kind of a men not Korean from was many sounded father It birth all. our us that for description and care their died not he could before mother years birth five many our and for knew girls ill three been were had there father eight; Our of boys. child say- seventh were the they was what I explained ing. translator my Kunsan, three-hour to the down during drive were but, they resemblance, that a men see couldn't worn I slightly relatives. these met I when convinced not uigta eri oe,Ias e yhsadantv of native husband—a my met also I Korea, in year that During recog- I if asking kept brothers my Kunsan, in arrived we When was I university. the near shop coffee a at brothers birth my met I hc a ulse atyear. last published was Hope, which and Love of Story A in Waiting: sisters her and Kunya adopting about wrote Jardins, Des Barbara mother, Her Technology. of Institute Massachusetts the at services support and of counseling dean assistant is Jardins Des Kunya me. with met—cried just I'd sister-in-law—whom down my miles and few road, a the were we until was. cry I didn't child I 5-year-old the for sad and years ago many those her of sad, thinking was mostly I her. with cry didn't I to Boston, returning before birth time my last left the I mother When world. the in one nat- ural and ordinary most this the like was felt experience me of part but Another story mine. great not a is this thinking, dis- and a tance from scene the viewing numb, disembodied and felt me of part Some made-for-TV movie. a like reunion the to surreal quality a was there that extremely And been fortunate. have I that say I respond. kun-nae, hc en “the means which T 71 DECEMBER 2003 violent conflict resolution, self-esteem, and leadership skills at the Bridges Summer Pro- P R O F I L E gram in Chester, Pa. From 1998 to 2001, Retsinas was coordinator for the Chester- Swarthmore Coalition Afterschool Program, Signs of recruiting and training literacy tutors from the College to assist disadvantaged elemen- Violence tary students. After graduation, she extend- ed her volunteer activities in Philadelphia, AMY RETSINAS ’01 EDUCATES helping with the tasks of daily living as an TEENSABOUTHEALTHY Action AIDS buddy and educator for RELATIONSHIPSAND Planned Parenthood. CONFLICTRESOLUTION. After graduation, Retsinas worked in Philadelphia as a legal advocate at Women ack home in Rhode Island, Amy Retsi- Against Abuse. For a year, she provided legal Bnas continues to challenge the status quo. options, advocacy, safety planning, and crisis “As a Lang Opportunity Scholar at intervention for domestic violence victims Swarthmore, I was afforded the opportunity trying to navigate through the complex legal and resources to create, design, and imple- system. ment a community service project,” says Now, Retsinas teaches youth about the Retsinas, who spent summer 1999 volun- warning signs and dynamics of potentially teering at a domestic violence agency, which abusive relationships. As the education out- was close to her home in Providence. “One ʼ 97 reach advocate at the Women’sResource day, I accompanied a staff member on a Center of South County in Rhode Island, home visit to meet with a former client and Retsinas develops curricula and conducts her two children. She had only lawn furni- workshops in high schools on teen dating ture in her apartment, and the three of them MEGHAN KRIEGEL violence and healthy relationships. In the shared a single twin mattress.” AT THE END OF OCTOBER, AMY RETSINAS WAS IN middle and elementary schools, she leads The shelter frequently received calls from BOSTON FOR A WOMEN’S POLITICAL SUMMIT AT workshops on bullying, teasing, and sexual community members with offers to donate JOHNF.KENNEDYLIBRARYANDMUSEUM.ASTHE harassment. She has established violence furniture. Yet because of a lack of storage prevention programs in schools across EDUCATION OUTREACH ADVOCATE AT THE WOMEN’S space and transportation, all furniture dona- seven school districts, facilitating two teen tions were turned away here—and at the five RESOURCECENTEROFSOUTHCOUNTYINRHODE female support groups, counseling and other Rhode Island domestic violence agen- ISLAND,SHEOFFERSWORKSHOPSONBULLYING, referring teen victims and peers, and cies. So, in summer 2000, Retsinas founded SEXUAL HARASSMENT, AND DATING VIOLENCE FOR designing evaluations to gauge effective- the Furniture Donation Exchange Program, 5TH- TO 12TH-GRADE STUDENTS. ness. creating a program to ensure that women “In addition to working with youth, I and families leaving domestic violence shel- present workshops and trainings for par- ters receive furniture free of charge. lence and discomfort of communities and ents and faculty to teach them how to recog- “Seeing both the demonstrated need for individuals in addressing these issues,” says nize the warning signs among teens and furniture and the available supply of dona- Retsinas. how to intervene effectively,” she says. “By tions, I decided my Lang Project would be to “Domestic violence is the leading cause educating young people about warning connect these two pieces—coordinating a of injury to women; every day, four women signs, nonviolence conflict resolution, and policy so that donated furniture can go into in the United States are murdered by a male the power of bystanders, I hope to stop the the new homes of domestic violence sur- intimate partner. Many people who are close cycle of violence and create a safer communi- vivors,” says Retsinas, who worked with to me in my life have been affected by rela- ty—free of violence.” organizations such as Goodwill and the tionship violence, yet the problem remains Retsinas adds: “Today, we are living in a Rhode Island Coalition Against Domestic hidden. I decided to write my senior sociolo- society where all violence, especially violence Violence. Through the Lang Opportunity gy/anthropology thesis on teenage dating against women, has become normalized Scholars Program—which recently shifted violence, only to find that little research and—to an extent—glorified. Swarthmore selection out of the admissions cycle to a rig- existed,” says Retsinas, who interviewed taught me how to challenge the status quo orous application process during sophomore teens and held focus groups in Philadelphia and think critically. The Lang Program was year—Eugene Lang ’38 supports innovative, and Rhode Island in order to write her thesis. especially invaluable in that it afforded me student-designed,community service projects. Her commitment to effect change, which the opportunity, resources, guidance, and “In a way, this initial involvement in the began to take shape during her Swarthmore encouragement to solve community prob- domestic violence movement opened my days, has grown out of a body of volunteer lems.” eyes to the pervasiveness of domestic vio- work. During summer 1998, she taught non- —Andrea Hammer DECEMBER 2003 75 LETTERS Continued from page 3

POSITIVELY CICERONIAN As a linguist schooled in and teacher of six languages both modern and classical, I am both impressed and amused by Presi- dent Alfred H. Bloom’s oratorical style (Commencement Speeches, September Bul- letin). It is positively Ciceronean, clauses within clauses within more clauses! I had to read some of his sentences over again to match up verbs with their subjects. More than one complete sentence took more HALCYON than 3 inches of space in one column from 1945 initial capital letter to its final period. What CHARLES ROOS ’48 WRITES THAT HE IS IN THIS PICTURE (SECONDROW,THIRDFROMTHERIGHT),WHICH oratory! APPEARED IN THE JUNE 2002 BULLETIN.INALOPSIDEDGAMEAGAINSTHAVERFORD,THECOACHES AUDREY KEMP BOWYER ’45 Oakland, Calif. DECLARED A 1-POINT SWARTHMORE VICTORY, THEN EXCHANGED PLAYERS TO EVEN THE SIDES.

CALLING“DEAN”PEABODY HEH,POPS! Quaker commitment to equality, I once Regarding the article “What Shall We Call In 30 years of teaching at Beloit College, I referred to a favorite history professor as the Professor?” I had a funny experience at can recall only one occasion on which I gave “Dr.,” and my friends laughed at me. Swarthmore. In a psychology seminar, I had much thought to how students addressed BARBARA HADDAD RYAN ’59 a professor named Dean Peabody, which is me. It was when a senior student and Alexandria, Va. what it said on his office door. I incorrectly advisee I’d known since his freshman year, leapt to the assumption that he was a dean passing me in the hall, greeted me with an ANARROWVICTORY in title rather than a “Dean” in name. So exuberant, “Heh, Pops!” The picture of the 1943 junior varsity foot- when our Social Psychology seminar began, Only some hours later did I recall that ball team in the Bulletin (“In My Life,” June I promptly called him by his title and the student had telephoned me the previous 2002, shown above) brought back 60-year- received a slightly startled look but thought evening, and my teenage daughter had sum- old memories. I played for Swarthmore in nothing about it. A couple of us in the semi- moned me to the phone with her usual hail. the game with Haverford described by Dick nar took to calling him Dean. It was only NELSON VAN VALEN ’48 Burrowes ’45. In one play, the left tackle and halfway through the semester that I discov- Alamosa, Colo. I both broke through the Haverford line, ered that I was inadvertently calling Profes- and we trapped their quarterback. He ran sor Peabody by his first name. At that point, THE EXALTED ONES backward, and we followed him. He slowed Dean he had been, and so, after a few sec- In the 1950s, professors in the classroom to a walk, and we walked back with him. onds of initial discomfort, Dean he re- were called “Mr.” or “Miss” (“Mrs.” wasn’t When he got close to the Haverford goal mained. common in that era)—unless they taught line, he raised his arm to pass the ball, and I DAVID LANDES ’85 math or science. Those exalted ones were tackled him some 60 yards behind the line Herndon, Va. called “Dr.” Annoyed by this flouting of the of scrimmage! After this play, the two coach- es got together in Quaker spirit and decided STATEMENT OF OWNERSHIP, MANAGEMENT, AND CIRCULATION that Swarthmore had won by one point, and 1. Publication: Swarthmore College Bulletin 11. Known bondholders, mortgages, or other security then the two teams exchanged players to 2. Publications number: 0888-2126 holders holding 1 percent or more of total amount make the game even. 3. Filing date: Sept. 30, 2003 of bonds, mortgages, or other securities: none 4. Issue frequency: August, September, December, 12. The purpose, function, and nonprofit status of CHARLES ROOS ’48 March, and June this organization has not changed during Nashville, Tenn. 5. Number of issues published annually: 5 the preceding 12 months. 6. Annual subscription price: none 14. Issue date for circulation data: Sept. 2003 7. Office of publication: 500 College Ave., 15. a. Total number of copies (net press run): 23,769 FORTHERECORD Swarthmore PA 19081-1390 b. Paid or requested circulation through dealers: 0 8. General business office: same c. 1-Paid or requested mail subscriptions: 20,886 The Bulletin staff regrets misidentifying 9. Publisher: Swarthmore College, 500 College Ave., 4-Other classes mailed: 1,125 (ISAL) Susannah Volpe ’05, John Halbert ’89, and Swarthmore PA 19081-1390 d. Free distribution by mail: 28 Editor: Jeffrey Lott, 500 College Ave., e. Free distribution outside the mail: 1,562 J.P. Partland ’90 in the September issue. Swarthmore PA 19081-1390 f. Total free distribution: 1,590 Write to us at 500 College Avenue, Swarth- Managing editor: Andrea Hammer, 500 College Ave., g. Total distribution: 23,601 Swarthmore PA 19081-1390 h. Copies not distributed: 168 more PA 19081-1390, or e-mail your letters 10. Owner: Swarthmore College, 500 College Ave., i. Total: 23,769 to [email protected]. T

Swarthmore PA 19081-1390 DECEMBER 2003 79 A D A Y I N T H E L I F E

G e t O n a n d G o

THESWIFT,BUSYLIVESOFRACHEL HENIGHAN ’97 AND CHARLIE MAYER ’98

By Jeffrey Lott Photographs by Claire Weiss ’03

OCT. 3, 2003: It’s pitch dark on a The radio news quiet residential street in northwestern producer’s job is Washington, D.C. At 5:45 a.m., Rachel multifaceted—from Henighan and Charlie Mayer have already conceiving stories to had their coffee and oatmeal. They’re in the setting up inter- starting blocks for another day. views, then gather- Saying a quick good-bye, Rachel steers ing audio resources their old Volvo toward the Stoddert Elemen- such as music or CHARLIE MAYER (LEFT) AND STUDIO ENGINEER VINCE MUSE CREATE A FINAL tary School in Georgetown. She’ll arrive archival sound, writ- MIXOFASTORYFORNPR’S WEEKEND EDITION SATURDAY. IN JANUARY, MAYER more than 2 hours before her fourth-grade ing the copy, and WILL BECOME SENIOR PRODUCER OF NPR’S 2004 ELECTION COVERAGE. students. Charlie says she’s a natural morn- editing the finished ing person. Usually, they exercise together audio for the air. On before work, but Rachel was away from her this Friday morning, Charlie is putting the he’s also a shop steward for AFTRA, the classroom yesterday, so she has a lot of finishing touches on Scott Simon’s 12- union that represents on-air, production, catching up to do. And today’s the day for minute interview with singer Joan Baez, and editorial staff members at NPR. the worms. which, although it was recorded earlier, will Charlie compares NPR to Swarthmore: Charlie rides with me to the gym, where sound “live” on the air tomorrow. Editing “There are a lot of incredibly talented people he jogs a mile on a treadmill (“you just get digitally on a computer, Charlie skillfully who love what they do—and also some hot- on and go,” he says), then sweats while lift- blends music from Baez’s latest album with headed, obnoxious young people.” Like you, ing free weights, does some push-ups, and carefully chosen excerpts from Simon’s half- I ask? He smiles, “I’m trying to be less so.” jogs again. He’s down to 158 pounds on his hour conversation with Baez. He says that many mentors have “helped me wiry 5’11” frame. He credits trainer Around 9 a.m., Charlie goes up to the focus my energy and aggression on the work. I’m a journeyman now—able to oper- ate independently but still with a lot to “I’m a journeyman now—able to learn.” At the elevator, he runs into one of his operate independently but still with mentors, Noah Adams, former host of All Things Considered. “Are you coming to the a lot to learn,” Charlie says. party?” asks Charlie. AFTRA negotiations have just been successfully completed, and DeWayne Hudson, who, standing nearby, top-floor canteen for more coffee. Nearly he has helped organize an after-work cele- spouts admiring jock clichés: “His motiva- 500 people work at NPR’s Massachusetts bration where NPR Executive Vice President tion was there. He was determined. He was Avenue headquarters, and many of them Ken Stern and chief union negotiator Ken consistent.” seem to know him. Although he was hired Greene (“the Kens,” says Charlie) will give After a quick shower, we head for full time after graduating from Swarthmore, toasts to the future. Adams says, “I remem- National Public Radio (NPR) in downtown Charlie has actually spent much of the last ber the meeting when Charlie first said, ‘I Washington, where Charlie’s a producer for decade at the network—beginning with an don’t get coffee anymore.’” Weekend Edition Saturday, a 2-hour news internship during his junior year of high “I figured, after I graduated from college, program hosted by Scott Simon. Charlie’s school. He’s worked on All Things Considered, I should do other things,” quips Charlie. windowless office is decorated with sou- Weekend Edition, and many other NPR pro- Adams, like a proud father, addresses me venirs of Iraq, where he spent three weeks in grams, doing everything from getting coffee again: “In radio, there are a bunch of things July producing news stories with reporter to editing tape to pitching story ideas to that you can teach and learn—and then Eric Westervelt. directing and now producing. These days, there’s instinct. Charlie’s got it.” SWARTHMORECOLLEGEBULLETIN 80 Rachel has thought of going into school administration but says that “to do this, I thought I needed to be a teacher first.” Georgetown, Stoddert is an aging building pile. The classroom starts to smell like a that echoes with children’s voices and is barn as the other children eagerly pick brightly decorated with their artwork. The through the compost. carpet in Rachel’s room is held together in In her school, Rachel says, teachers are places by duct tape, but there are new win- given quite a bit of autonomy in reaching dows admitting copious light. In a sunny the goals set by the curriculum. “Teachers corner, two students read silently—one of can really accomplish something” in this many daily tasks that Rachel has listed on a environment, she says. Success in any class- flip chart in the corner of the room. The stu- room “really comes down to teacher training dents are going about the business of learn- and how competent your teachers are.” ing independently as Rachel and a student The school day ends with time on the teacher answer questions and move them playground, but first there’s an impromptu from task to task. Math is done for the day, violin concert. Five novice players bow a few but there’s still silent notes as restless classmates put their chairs reading and story writing up and ready themselves for the bell. On the and science—the worms way out, each of them gets a good-bye hand- in the large black tub. shake (or hug) and a cookie. The cookies are Rachel spreads a plas- courtesy of Charlie, who dropped them off tic drop cloth on the on his way to buy supplies for the party, floor, reminding the chil- catching an unusual moment with Rachel dren of the project’s his- on the fly. tory. A year ago, a con- Her students are fond of her—and moti- tainer of worms and an vated. One boy says to me, “She doesn’t yell armload of ripped-up at the bad kids. She just tells them not to do newspaper were placed it.” A girl says, “She reads us books that we in the closed tub. Water choose, like Tales of a Fourth Grade Nothing.” and vegetable scraps Another says, “Sometimes, when we’re really were added weekly as the working hard, she’ll let us go out early for worms devoured the recess.” newspapers and made— Rachel’s really working hard too—but what? she doesn’t get recess. The compost needs to RACHELHENIGHANTEACHESFOURTHGRADEINA “Ew!” cry the children as she tips the tub be distributed to an outside garden. She has WASHINGTON,D.C.,PUBLICSCHOOL(TOP).SHE on the drop cloth. A moist brown mound dozens of papers to grade, and there’s a ANDCHARLIE(BOTTOM) MARRIED IN AUGUST. appears. used-book fair being organized by the PTA. “It’s just dirt,” says Rachel. “It’s compost, She checks in with Charlie by phone. They In January, Charlie will take charge as and there are lots of worms in it. Your job is agree to meet at home about 8 p.m., after senior producer of NPR’s election coverage to pick out as many worms as possible so we her Friday night yoga class. for 2004. On election night, he will produce can start the box for this year.” Most of the As the sun sets over Washington, Char- a program with a staff of more than 100 children roll up their sleeves and dig in, but lie’s tapping a keg of Sierra Nevada while a reporters, editors, producers, writers, and some recoil from the earthy mound. “You co-worker sets up a huge spread of barbecue technicians. He’s just 27. can name your worms as you find them,” and hors d’oeuvres in NPR’s rooftop snack she suggests brightly. They run with this bar. Dozens of staffers drift in—top man- OVER AT STODDERT ELEMENTARY, the school idea. agers and union members chatting amiably. day is in full swing as “Ms. Henighan” pre- “I named this one after Shawn,” says one The two Kens make short, lighthearted sides over her classroom in a firm, friendly girl. speeches, and everyone raises a cup to the manner. There’s a sense of purpose in the “Daniel, Daniel—this one looks like future. Charlie, pouring beer for all of his bright, busy room. All of these 24 children you!” cries another. friends and mentors, beams; it is just what need attention, and Rachel gives some to One child tells Rachel how afraid she is he wanted to happen—getting everyone each child in turn. of worms. “I’m really going to face my fear,” together. Maybe it is a little like Swarth- A few blocks from the heart of upscale she says as she gamely picks one from the more. T DECEMBER 2003 Woodland “Woody” ’47 and F Hanna Machlup Hastings ’51

lthough we did not meet at Swarthmore, it was really “ASwarthmore that brought us together, brokered by Hanna’s brother Stefan [’47].Swarthmore was and is important to both of us, and an annuity and bequest in our estate plans are our way to give something back to this great school. Planned giving allowed us to make a larger contribution to the College than we thought possible. “We commend this opportunity to you.”

Woody is a professor of biology at Harvard University, and Hanna is retired from her position as director of student affairs at the Harvard School of Public Health. Together, they served 20 years as masters of Pforzheimer House, an undergraduate house at Harvard. Woody and Hanna live in Cambridge. To learn how gift planning at Swarthmore

could work for you, please contact Ted Mills,

director of planned giving, at (610) 328-8323,

or e-mail [email protected]

for a confidential consultation.

Visit the Swarthmore planned giving Web site

at pg.swarthmore.edu.