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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 LXXVIII, Number 1
Tuesday, September 9, 2025
Waltham, Mass.
DEMONSTRATION
FACULTY MEETING
Welcome Back Rally celebrates Brandeis workers, cross-union and academic staff ■ In the spirit of Labor Day,
University union representatives shared messages of unity, appreciation and perseverance to kick off the fall semester. By SOPHIA DE LISI
JUSTICE EDITOR IN CHIEF
SPEECH: President Arthur Levine addresses faculty at their weekly meeting.
On Sept. 3, six Brandeis unions held a crossunion rally on the Great Lawn, starting at noon. The unions represented were the Brandeis Library Worker’s Union, Service Employee International Union Local 888, SEIU Local 509, SEIU 32BJ and the University’s newest union, Research and Academic Staff SEIU 888. At least 30 community members, including rally organizers, gathered on the lawn to support the event and its speakers. Some individuals held signs that read phrases such as “united we bargain, divided we beg,” “top ten programs deserve top ten wages” and “unions make Brandeis great again.” Many held small flyers that said “come together.” University Budget and Operations Administrator, Tyson Bailey, said during his opening remarks, “we wanted to take this opportunity to acknowledge and celebrate the people who make the Brandeis experience possible for all of us, and to help foster the community that we believe Brandeis is and should be.” Bailey is a part of SEIU 888’s administrative staff and bargaining team. “An organization shows its values by where they spend their money, as a social justice institution, Brandeis needs to take care of its faculty, librarians and facilities workers!” Prof. Sarah
ELIZA BIER/The Justice
Administration discuss new office, building projects and Trump's campus impact ■ Following a summer of significant
developments at Brandeis University, with new dormitory foundations laid and new academic schools launched, the faculty convened on Sept. 5 for their first meeting. of the year. By NEMMA KALRA
JUSTICE DEPUTY EDITOR
Faculty and staff gathered in the Rapaporte Treasure Hall for the meeting as Chair of the Faculty Senate, Prof. Jeffrey Lenowitz (POL), opened the meeting by welcoming everyone and outlining the day’s agenda. He also noted that a special faculty meeting will be scheduled in the near future to address the implications of recent executive orders on the University which impact federal funding and international student enrollment. Lenowitz then turned the floor over to University President, Arthur Levine ’70. Levine began his speech by explaining why he has now assumed the role of University President, despite his original appointment being temporary. According to Levine, as the Board of Trustees began to recruit his successor, they struggled to find an adequate candidate. His continued leadership came with a condition: that the Board allocate funding for improvements in three areas: enrollment, development and marketing. By funneling resources into these priorities, Levine hopes to generate revenue that can be reinvested into research, faculty and graduate programs. He also took a moment to highlight the University’s accomplishments during his time as interim president, stating that what had been achieved “requires many years at most universities, if they are able to accomplish it at all.” Looking ahead, Levine expressed a desire to build on that momentum in the coming year, with one step being the appointment of Professor Lenowitz to a liaison role between the faculty and the administration. Among these accomplishments, Levine also mentioned the recent restructuring of the University’s academic programs into four schools: Arts, Humanities, and Culture; Business and Economics; Science, Engineering, and Technology and Social Sciences and Social Policy. To Levine, this reorganization gives the founding deans of each school a chance to “take this year and dream,” something that “does not happen often in academia.” Notably, Levine shared that he
will not make any staff changes until the deans have outlined their long-term plans. Levine then addressed the ongoing academic reorganization in connection with a review of the Brandeis Core Requirements. He questioned whether the education Brandeis students walk away with is relevant to the “global digital economy” they are entering. Finally, he expressed the need to make the liberal arts valuable again to the real world. He outlined this both from the perspective of curricular revisions and in creating a transcript that would emphasize careeraligned competencies gained at Brandeis, and provide students with a practical record they could rely on throughout their professional lives. With these structural and curricular changes, Levine concluded his speech saying he hopes to position Brandeis as a "prototype for higher education.” Following his address, faculty members had the opportunity to ask Levine questions. Prof. Sabine von Mering (WGS) came to the microphone first, expressing her concerns about Brandeis not having a Sustainability Manager. To her, Levine’s vision of excellence is not possible without sustainability efforts. Levine agreed with von Mering, but noted that the change cannot happen without funding. Prof. Aldo Musacchio (BUS) then asked if Lenowitz’s new role as liaison poses any conflicts of interest with his current position as Chair of the Faculty Senate. Lenowitz and Levine both answered this question, explaining that Lenowitz’s new role is an advancement of his current position, designed to bring the senate and faculty into Board deliberations. The final question to Levine came from Prof. Bernadette Brooten (WGS/REL), who asked about the recent erasure of the Office of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion and the creation of the Office of Access and Excellence. Brooten expressed disappointment in the University’s decision, saying it appeared to bow to pressure from the Trump administration and was made without consulting faculty. Upon follow up, she shared with The Justice that, “Many of us worked for years to bring racial equity to Brandeis, including by urging the creation of the Office of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion … the University leadership got rid of that office and introduced the Office of Access and Excellence without even consulting the full faculty.” According to Brooten, the Brandeis leadership laid off Director of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Initiatives Dr. Charles Chip McNeal and project manager Llewellen Murphy, stating, “Those initiatives could have greatly helped in creating an innovative curriculum accompanying Brandeis's new structure.
Lupis (PSYC) MA ’14 Ph.D. ’16 declared in her address to the rally. She added that the University’s administration has offered a 1.5% cost of living increase, to which the crowd responded with shouts of disapproval. “How can we live, Brandeis?” asked Prof. Lupis. “Your students and alumni are watching; they know who keeps Brandeis running, our staff, our facilities workers, our faculty and our librarians. Solidarity!” she concluded to the cheering crowd. Additionally, University Personnel and Business Process Administrator and bargaining committee member Lena Webb MS ’10 Ph.D.’10 described how University faculty have faced intensifying workloads without compensation to reflect the additional work. She shared that she has been at Brandeis for 10 years, and that the institution has shown that it believes faculty “can be shuffled around, that [they] just absorb extra work without compensation.” Webb explained that this time last year, Brandeis faculty felt disrespected and uncertain due to the layoffs that took place over the summer. “... We find ourselves in a similar situation this year … where we need to be focused on doing our jobs, not wondering if we’re going to have them,” she said, to which the crowd cheered in agreement. “But this year, we have union power!” Webb added that people can “grow” this union power by wearing a button, showing up to rallies and standing with other unions. Graduate student worker for the math department and union member, Sarah Dennis, affiliated with SEIU Local 509, also encouraged rally attendees to maintain this support for one another in her speech. She shared that she has been on the Brandeis campus for five years and emphasized the “vital” roles that each community member has in keeping the University functioning. “It’s a scary time, right, to be here? But we can’t
See RALLY, 5 ☛
Brandeis works with Hillel to transform vacant Kutz Hall into Center for Jewish Life on campus ■ A $25 million campaign is
inspiring the remodel of the hall in North Quad. By ANN ADDAMS
JUSTICE CONTRIBUTING WRITER
The University is partnering with Hillel, a Jewish campus organization, to transform vacant Kutz Hall into a new Center for Jewish Life. The Center is part of a $25 million campaign sponsored by “a coalition of philanthropists, trustees, faculty, alumni, and parents,” according to the Executive Director of Hillel and Senior Jewish Chaplain Rabbi Seth Winberg. Plans for the new center include a kosher cafe, spaces for events and Shabbat meals, student lounges, a rooftop deck and more. The center was proposed due to Hillel “outgrow[ing] [their] small office in Usdan and currently rent[ing] scattered rooms across campus for activities" as well as a way to foster Jewish life on campus. Winberg said that “Hillel has been in discussions with the university for several years about the critical need for a perma-
nent physical home.” Community Engagement Coordinator for Brandeis Hillel Coco Trentalancia '27, said that “Hillel having its own building will really take Jewish life at Brandeis to the next level and allow it to soar.” Kutz Hall, located in North Quad, was once home to the Campus Card Office, University Events, the Registrar, International Students and Scholars Office and Office of Graduate Affairs, as well as some classrooms. The offices formerly in the building were relocated to various parts of campus, leaving the building vacant. According to Daniel Tress, the Associate Director of Capital Programs, “I don't believe [the Center for Jewish Life] was ever the "original plan" for Kutz Hall. [The project] has been under discussion for several years without a clearly viable location. Kutz became the most viable location once it was vacated.” Planning and fundraising for the project are still in the early stages, and it is unknown when construction is set to begin. Nonetheless, construction will commence in a way that will cause the least amount of disturbance to the students living in North Quad dorms near the Kutz building, according to Tress. Winberg stated that more information on the project will be released this October.
See FACULTY MEETING, 5☛
Parking problem How the changes in parking designations are impacting students. By BRIANNA EARLE
Photo courtesy of BRANDEIS UNIVERSITY
FEATURES 7
Photo courtesy of CREATIVE COMMONS
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Album analysis
Rat poison on campus harms wildlife
A review of Sabrina Carpenter's latest album "Man's Best Friend."
By LUCIA THOMAS
By ALICE NGUYEN
By THE JUSTICE EDITORIAL BOARD
ARTS AND CULTURE 15
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NEWS 3
The state of Brandeis
U.S. Open recap By SRINIDHI SRIRAMAN
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FORUM 8 SPORTS 12