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As a graduating senior, I’m sure many of my peers can relate because I can’t wait to get off this campus. I have wanted to leave since I first arrived as a mid-year student in January 2020, so this has been a long time coming. Was it worth it to stick it out and finish my degree? I’m not sure.
The housing selection process for the 2023-2024 academic year has been nothing if not disastrous. On-campus housing has been the subject of many editorials written by this board in the past, and students have long been urging the University to focus on improving both the quality and the quantity of housing, but clearly, such pleas have been in vain. This year, the increasing number of admitted students each year and the never-changing amount of housing provided by the University led to over half of upperclassmen not receiving housing.
Halfway through the spring semester, my friends and I decided we wanted to live together. We realized that one of our best options was to live in Ziv Quad, which has suite-style dorms for six people. The Department of Community Living facilitates the housing process at Brandeis and gives you a lottery number to enter the housing pool — the lower the number, the more likely it is to get your choice in housing.
As a brown-skinned girl, and often the only one in some of my classes, I hardly raise my hand to offer my thoughts in class. I am the “quiet kid” who is always listening to the lectures and my peers discussing literature we were supposed to have need. Am I an introvert? Yes, I am. Yet for me, the reason behind not speaking up is because of a fear of not fitting into the standards that seemed to be placed on students like me: students of color.
Content warning: This editorial discusses instances of sexual assault.
Content warning: This article discusses instances of violence and sexual assault.
Dear Editor,
“Not to be rude, but can I say something?” says my friend, who has never picked up a softball. I nod yes and they say, “Your field does look like all of the dinky little league fields that I drive by at home.”
As we enter the spring, the number of public events held on campus — from Admitted Students Day to Commencement — are about to pick up, and as such this board wishes to address a problem that is ever-present but soon to be exacerbated: driving and parking on campus.
As students, we all see the amount of money that comes into the school, but the question that arises is: Where does all the money go? As per the data available, Brandeis brings in a substantial amount of money through donations and tuition. In 2019, the money brought in from tuition alone was $285 million. While we know that at least $1.14 million goes directly to University President Ron Liebowitz, what is being done with the leftover $284 million? As students, we feel it is necessary to understand where this money goes and how much of it actually goes towards improving the lives of the students who are paying to attend this institution.
Although this board has criticized the housing selection process and the general housing options on campus, we also recognize that the individual employees at the Department of Community Living are doing their best to accommodate students’ housing needs in the face of limited resources.
In light of room selection numbers for the 2023-2024 academic year being released, this board urges the University to fix the ongoing problems that exist within Brandeis as it pertains to its housing system.
Journalists can spend weeks, months, and even years with sources getting to know their everyday habitual routines, their familial relationships, and even their darkest fears. Within this process, reporters may share certain personal information to relate to their sources and make conversations feel less one sided. However, for this relationship to function ethically, it is imperative that journalists follow the Society of Professional Journalists code of ethics and are transparent and forthright not only with their sources but also with their readers.
Brandeis prides itself on its student-driven clubs and organizations, but this board believes that the Department of Student Engagement struggles to facilitate the infrastructure necessary to aid student organizations. The department has set goals for the 2022-2023 academic year, with items such as “Establish itself as a new department” and “prioritize efficiency in operations, program, policy, technology, and budget management.” This board is very conscious of the fact that the Department of Student Engagement is a newly-reconfigured department and requires some time to create effective infrastructure. With that being said, there continues to be a severe disconnect between the department and students.
Content Warning: Metions of sexual assult, self harm and suicide
Brandeis purports itself to be a supportive place for those struggling with mental health issues; however, students on this campus lack trust in the Brandeis Counseling Center due to a wide range of issues. The University should be obligated to inform any and all current and prospective students of the limitations of its resources. The University offers a large number of publicized mental health events such as therapy dogs and de-stressing events such as Sleep Week, but they are not vigilant in terms of individual personalized care even though they claim to be. The University administration prides itself on offering these resources without acknowledging the shortage of the ones that students really need, which is misleading and potentially dangerous.
Over the past century, powerful individuals have made decisions that have irreversibly destroyed the planet. The exigent state of our climate is something that has been brushed off by world governments for decades. This reality is, understandably, incredibly overwhelming for the majority of people to hear.