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T h e I n d e p e n d e n t S t u d e n t N e w s p a p e r o f B r a n d e is U n i v e r sit y S i n c e 1 9 4 9 Volume LXXVII, Number 2
Tuesday, September 17, 2024
FACULTY MEETING
Waltham, Mass.
VOTES COUNTED
Waltham primary results ■ The City of Waltham has
officially released polling infomation from its Sept. 3 election. By ZOE ZACHARY JUSTICE EDITOR
ELIZA BIER/The Justice
MEETING: A faculty member speaks at their Sept. 13 meeting.
Faculty vote on the future of the university ■ On Sept. 13, faculty gathered
to discuss the proposed vote of no confidence in President By ANNA MARTIN
JUSTICE EDITOR IN CHEIF
On Sept. 13 at 2 p.m., faculty gathered in Rapaporte Treasure Hall to continue the tabled discussion regarding the potential vote of no confidence in Brandeis University President Ronald Liebowitz. Friday’s meeting marks the first faculty meeting of the semester, change in membership. Prof. Jody Gittell (HELLER) stepped down from the position of Chair of the Faculty Senate, with Prof. Jeffrey Lenowitz (POL) stepping into the role. Small changes to voting processes have occurred with the aim of preventing voting confusion and inaccuracies. Following the introduction, University Provost Carol Fierke spoke to the faculty on behalf of President Liebowitz as he was not present at the meeting. The speech welcomed new and returning faculty back to campus, encouraging them to get involved by joining faculty governance and speaking at events. Faculty members were also encouraged to join fundraising efforts, as the public phase of the capital campaign is set to begin in about a year. Fierke proceed to provide some updates to the faculty, explaining the statistics for the current incoming class. Class of 2028 consists of 741 new undergraduates and 84 transfer students. She also provided demographic information, stating “The first year class is very diverse.” According to Fierke, 39% of the students are students of color, 18% are first generation, 18% are international, and Pell eligible students are 24% of the incoming firstyear class.” Fierke also gave an update on the Graduate Student Union who are in the process of contract negotiation with the University, stating that there was a “productive meeting” with union representatives and explained that negotiations are in the final stages. Early in the meeting , it was proposed that normal activities, typically conducted during the first meeting of the semester, should e tabled in favor of continuing the conversation regarding the potential for a vote of no confidence, that took place at the end of the 2023-24 school year. The first speaker regarding this issue was Prof. Sarah Mayorga (ANTH), who compared Brandeis to six peer
institutions, in an effort to specify the responsibility of a university president. She reviewed the college ranking system, which is important to prospective students and pointed out that while many private institutions dropped last year due to the changes in the ranking system, Brandeis had been dropping prior to these changes. Mayorga stated “in eight years we’ve dropped 26 spots.” She also pointed out that the endowment of Northeastern University, once smaller than that of Brandeis, has surpassed the institution in size due to their “aggressive fundraising strategy, including two capital campaigns since 2013.” Mayorga also reviewed increasing graduate student enrollment at other institutions, countering claims made by President Liebowitz stating that all graduate enrollment is down. She called for a strategic plan from Liebowitz, closing with the statement “by year nine of this presidency, Brandeis needs and deserves more than these concepts of a plan.” The first speaker against the motion for a vote of no confidence was Prof. Sacha Nelson (BIOL), who began his statement by talking about his first faculty meeting 30 years ago, where the president at the time announced that Brandeis was in a “dire financial crisis.” Nelson explained that he was told to ignore it and continue to work on teaching and research. “Since then, our institution has lurched from crisis to crisis,” he said in the meeting,explaining that Brandeis has never been financially stable and “our vision has always outstripped our resources.” Nelson expressed his belief that most problems with the University are structural, mostly due to the small size and young age of the institution which he says would not be altered by a change in administration. Instead Nelson shared that it would be productive to opt out of rankings and instead “celebrate the strength of our performance despite our small size.” He concluded by stating that the proposed motion is “incoherent and unhelpful.” Following Nelson, an undisclosed faculty member showed support of the motion. She questions the potential concerns that people have regarding this vote and the effect that it will have on the University. The speaker believed that the vote would not make Brandeis look weak, nor prevent future students from applying. She stated “morale of our current students reached a low last year and was only enhanced by their perception that we faculty are not doing anything to support them. Staff morale is also precipitously low due [to] cuts and restructuring.” She also went
on to discuss claims that these financial problems were inherited by the current administration and questioned why nothing had been done in eight years to reverse them. “I’m sure each of you has sat in your department meetings this week hearing deeply troubling news about the drastic administrative cuts that occurred over the summer and about where we are heading next. More cuts, more service courses, the shutting of graduate programs, loss of R1 status, a hiring freeze, the sunsetting of majors and minors, and so on.” She acknowledged that a change in leadership will not immediately result in resolution of these problems, but if the University makes no changes neither will the course that it is on. During the meeting, a member of the the Brandeis International Business School spoke against the motion. He acknowledged concerns held by many, and stated “I think we’re all here also, because we share the same objective, which I think is that we all want a better Brandeis,” and went on to list some things that could be improved such as infrastructure, enrollment, rankings and more. He acknowledges that many are frustrated because they do not feel as if their colleagues are listening to their feelings and concerns, and there are other things to be talking about that could better Brandeis. “I think the option that you are proposing is nuclear,” the member of the business school said. It “is just going to make things worse.It’s going to take us far away from where we want to be.” The speaker expressed that this vote would lead to more chaos and uncertainty for donors as well as all community members, and explained that he did not feel like the upside of this motion has been explained. Prof. John Plotz (ENG) spoke in support of the motion. He expressed concerns regarding the rally that took place on Nov. 10 of last year, where University administration called police on students, ultimately leading to forceful arrests on campus. Plotz explained that Brandeis was founded as a non sectarian institution, on the principles of acceptance of all due to discrimination faced by many.he actions seen from the administration last fall counter that narrative says Plotz. He also shared worries of information being withheld from the faculty by administration and expressed that ties between the Board of Trustees and faculty have been weakened due to Brandeis’s administration. The board has the power to exercise the nuclear option if necessary, says Plotz, but the faculty does not. Therefore, he
See MEETING, 7 ☛
The results of the 2024 Waltham Massachusetts State primary elections on Sept. 3 have been certified and posted on Waltham’s official city website. The state primary for offices other than president took place on Tuesday, Sept. 3 2024, and included votes for a range of local and national positions. According to the results spreadsheet, a total of 36,947 registered voters participated in Waltham’s primary elections. The first recorded result was for a Senator in Congress. Incumbent Senator Elizabeth Warren ran unopposed, earning a victory in Waltham with 5,506 votes. Additionally, according to election data, there were also 74 writeins for Senators in Congress, as well as 586 blank votes. Warren, a Democrat, has served as a Massachusetts senator since 2012. According to her website, Warren has put forward plans to end lobbying, impose an ultra-millionaire tax on fortunes worth over $50 million, build more than three million new homes and require every public company to disclose climate-related risks among other democratic policies. Warren advanced from the Democratic Primary and will be on the ballot on Nov. 5. Ten-year Democrat Incumbent Katherine Clark won Representative in Congress for Massachusetts fifth congressional district, which Waltham falls under. Like Warren, she ran unopposed, earning a total of 5,481 votes in favor and winning Waltham. There were also 48 write-ins and 637 blank votes. Overall, she won her primary, and will be appearing on the Nov. 5 ballot. Clark has served on the Massachusetts senate since 2013 and was elected by Congress Democrats to serve as Democratic Whip in 2022. According to her website, Clark is “a leading proponent for ending wage discrimination; safeguarding access to abortion; ending gun violence; improving access to affordable, quality child care; and guaranteeing paid leave.” Clark advanced from the Democratic Primary and will be on the ballot on Nov. 5. Democrats Marilyn M. Petitto Devaney and Mara Dolan contested for the Third District’s seat on the Governor’s Council. Devaney, the incumbent since 1999, won Waltham with 3,083 votes. The election was close — Dolan had received 2,559 votes, with 11 writeins and 513 blank votes. Devaney did, however, lose the overall vote to Dolan and will be stepping down from the council in January 2025. According to Devaney’s website, much of her campaign relied on the fact that Devaney is not a lawyer, meaning that she would have a greater capacity to be impartial in the face of the many judiciary tasks put in front of the governor’s council. Dolan, who won the overall vote across the Third District, advertised her position as a Public Defender on her website. There, she also emphasized her goals of forwarding science-based addiction recovery and raising the age of Juvenile Court jurisdiction, as well as pointing out that she is pro-choice unlike Devaney. Michael J. Barrett ran unopposed for the Third District’s Senator in General Court. He won Waltham with 5130 votes, with 31 write-ins and 1,005 blank ballots. Barrett has been a Massachusetts State Senator since 1990 and is the Assistant Majority Leader. According to his website, Barret has advocated for longer school days, equal rights
See ELECTION, 7 ☛
Off-campus living
Concert critique
Sustainability department shut down
Seniors speak on moving off
Justice editor gets an inside look into the recent Beabadoobee concert in Boston.
By SOPHIA DE LISI and HEDY YANG
campus for their final year of college. By LEA ZAHARONI
By SOPHIA DE LISI GRACE DOH/The Justice
on the basis of sexual orientation, pro-choice advocacy, health care for underserved communities, and green policies such as the Toxic Use Reduction Act. Democrat Thomas M. Stanley ran against Democrat Heather A. May for Representative in General Court for the Ninth Middlesex District (Waltham includes both the Ninth and Tenth Middlesex Districts for Massachusetts Court representatives). Stanley, the incumbent and long-time Waltham resident, won Waltham with 2,248 votes to May’s 2,038 votes. There were four write-ins and 91 blank ballots. May’s website highlights her primary issues as having an accountable and transparent government, affordable housing and climate justice. Stanley’s website features answered questionnaires from several Waltham residents and organizations. In a questionnaire from Resident Dan Berlin, Stanely articulates the importance of securing state and local funding to support projects such as Waltham’s new high school and preventing private housing development in Waltham. He is also a member of several committees within the Massachusetts House of Representatives, including the Elder Nutrition Commision and the LGBTQ+ Aging Commission. For the Tenth Middlesex District Representative, Democrat John Lawn Jr. ran unopposed and won Waltham with 1,093 votes. There were 11 writeins and 181 blank ballots. The race for Tenth Middlesex District Representative is ongoing and Lawn will appear on the Nov. 5 ballot. Should he lose, his term will end in January 2025. Lawn is a part of several committees, including the Health Care Financing Joint Committee and the Election Laws Joint Committee. For Middlesex County’s Clerk of Courts, Michael Sullivan — Democrat — ran unopposed and won Waltham with 5,041 votes. There were 22 writeins and 1,103 blank ballots. Sullivan has served as the Clerk of Courts since 2007. Maria C. Curtatone — Democrat — ran unopposed for Register of Deeds Middlesex South, winning Waltham 5,032 votes with 26 write-ins and 1,108 blank ballots. An incumbent, she has served as the Register of Deeds since 2013. Her website elevates her achievements, such as “digitization and online availability of ALL recorded land books and registered land case plans,” “homestead informational sessions to educate constituents,” and “consumer alerts to protect constituents from potentially costly solicitations and unauthorized recordings.” Three Republican candidates ran for Massachusetts Senator: Robert J. Antonellis, Ian Cain and John Deaton. They received 448 votes, 96 votes and 821 votes, respectively, with Deaton winning Waltham. There were two write-ins and 18 blank ballots. Deaton is also the candidate to advance from the Republican Primary and will be appearing on the Nov. 5 ballot. Deaton, U.S. Marine veteran and cancer survivor, presents himself as a champion for “underdogs.” He also takes a special interest in cryptocurrencies. Carly Marie Downs, a Republican, ran unopposed for Representative in General Court for Ninth Middlesex District. She won Waltham with 685 votes, with 17 write-ins and 374 blank ballots. She champions herself as a representative for small business, her website stating that she ran because she is “sick and tired of our elected officials doing nothing to change the status quo.” Comparing this primary with Waltham’s 2020 state primary reveals that somewhat fewer voters showed up to the polls this year, despite a relatively constant population size.
FEATURES 9
Photo courtesy of JORDAN CURTIS HUGHES
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