M O N D A Y SEPTEMBER 22, 2003
THE BROWN DAILY HERALD Volume CXXXVIII, No. 76
An independent newspaper serving the Brown community since 1891
www.browndailyherald.com
Simmons sees responsibilities extend beyond Brown campus BY GREG MAZUREK
After spending the previous two years devoting the majority of her time to activities directly related to Brown, President Ruth Simmons is branching out. In the coming months, Simmons will most likely sit on or chair boards for Bennett College, Johns Hopkins University and the state of Rhode Island. “Virtually every president of major universities does this,” said Simmons of her responsibility to work nationally as well as on campus. During “the first two years, I deliberately avoided outside commitments to spend time on campus,” Simmons said. Simmons receives hundreds of invitations each year to join committees or boards. Even though it can be “deeply offensive” to say no to a committee, Simmons said she must reject many offers. Despite the vast number of hours Simmons spends on issues not directly related to Brown, she continues to “make sure (she) spends as much time as possible on student issues and interaction with students,” she said. As part of her effort to become involved with a small college or community college each year, Simmons has agreed to serve on a board to evaluate Bennett College in Greensboro, N.C., one of two African-American women’s colleges in the country. President Johnnetta Cole took control of Bennett in 2001 and completely turned the school around, Simmons told The Herald. Throughout those two years, Simmons advised Cole as she brought the college back from the brink of losing its accreditation as it faced a crippling budget deficit. see SIMMONS, page 4
Sara Perkins / Herald
The Hourglass Café reopened Sunday night in its new Faunce House location.
Hourglass Café reopening draws a crowd BY KRISTA HACHEY
A steady stream of customers turned out Sunday evening for the reopening of the Hourglass Café, a student-run, nonprofit coffee shop devoted to the promotion of Fair Trade products, at its new location in Faunce House. Opening night began with a performance by student break-dancers and was attended by a crowd of customers. “It’s great to have a place where you can see some of the talent our community has to offer in a relaxed coffee-shop setting,” said Olivia Yu ’07. “It’s also nice
to have a place on campus where you can get bubble tea — I came to try it.” Café managers and volunteers pushed for the move from the former location in the Bear’s Lair to Faunce in order to improve campus centralization and increase profit with a more accessible location. “We had a lot of customers at the old location before they moved the new exercise equipment in nearby,” said Oxfam at Brown President McKenna Morrigan ’04. “The location goal of Oxfam and the aim of those who run the Hourglass now is to
Clinton book signing brings hundreds to Thayer Street BY SARAH LABRIE
Sarah LaBrie / Herald
They paid $22.00. They waited for hours. They only got six seconds of face time, but it was worth it because it was Hillary Clinton. Over 600 people lined the sidewalk in front of the College Hill Bookstore and filled neighboring Avon cinema in hopes of meeting the former first lady and current New York Senator. Clinton’s stop in Providence was one of many on her tour across the United States to promote her autobiography “Living History.” Diehard Democrats and fans of the former first lady turned out alongside Clinton critics and others who were just there for the adventure. “I’m here for the celebrity fix,” said Brown student Neel Shah ’04, who attended the event with a friend. He managed to stake out a place near the front of a line of nearly 600 people. Every person in line was guaranteed a signed book, but little
Sen. Hillary Clinton’s sold-out book signing attracted enough people to form a line that snaked through the Avon.
see CLINTON, page 8
I N S I D E M O N D AY, S E P T E M B E R 2 2 , 2 0 0 3 Tutson ’87 returns to Rhode Island to headline the Jonnycake storytelling festival arts & culture,page 3
Enrollment in Brown’s summer studies program continues to increase page 5
Sayles Hall organ celebrates 100th birthday with dancing and a cake page 5
make it a sustainable, long-lasting part of the Brown community, and I think this was a wise move for its future.” The café’s new residence and expanded menu will allow students to socialize over bubble tea while campus musicians, spoken word artists and dancers use the stage in the Underground space. The new menu includes grilled items, sandwiches and burritos along with vegan and vegetarian café staples. All products are made with organic ingredients. Oxfam at Brown, a chapter of Oxfam America, founded the café three years ago to spread awareness about world poverty and injustice and to promote solutions to those problems, Morrigan said. “Fair Trade is a program through which farmers in developing countries are able to get a decent wage for their product,” said café manager Stefanie McGowan ’04. “This in turn allows them to improve their quality of living and create substantial growth in their communities.” Café volunteer Zara Ahmed ’06 said that the implications of practicing Fair Trade can be far-reaching and that the impact college students can have on global issues like hunger and poverty should not be underestimated. “Last semester we made a profit of $1,500, which can go a long way in the Third World,” she said. “Projects like providing seeds for farmers and teaching women literacy don’t cost all that much. Groups that oversee these types of programs and get donations from cafés like the Hourglass can help people live a better life in simple ways.”
TO D AY ’ S F O R E C A S T Nelson ’04 discusses how the off-campus social scene leaves a lot to be desired opinions, page 11
Another shut-out win for w. soccer gives team momentum going into Ivy play sports, page 12
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