Posts Tagged ‘barnard’
Why we still need women’s colleges
In the wee hours of morning, I read Lanbo Zhang’s column on why Barnard and Columbia should merge. It was honest. It was upfront. And it was incredibly controversial. A Facebook event in response to it has already been created.
Though I understand why people have reacted to it strongly in the comments, there hasn’t been much respectful dialogue, and at this point, all sides are getting lost in rhetoric and emotions. What I want to do here is to try to provide an opportunity for respectful dialogue.
What strikes me the most is that the column ignores the value of women’s colleges. And Lanbo is definitely not the only person—I’ve had multiple conversations with fellow students or seen multiple comment threads in which readers think that women’s colleges no longer have reason to exist, that once Columbia started accepting women, that somehow invalidated Barnard’s existence.
So if Barnard students do go a lot of Columbia classes, do go to the same restaurants, and do essentially still interact with men, what is the point of maintaining Barnard as the women’s college we know it as?
Because the glass ceiling still exists. Because sexism still exists. Because gender inequality exists.
Can You Smell The Teen Spirit?
On Monday Barnard’s Spirit Week will begin. It is the love child of Greek Games and Spirit Day.
For some reason some people thought Greek Games were a little demeaning to women.
Spirit Week is 90s themed. To get us fired up for the week, I have put together my own small list of 90s favorites.
Liberian peace activist Leymah Gbowee is Barnard’s commencement speaker
This just in: Nobel laureate and Liberian peace activist Leymah Gbowee will deliver this year’s commencement address to Barnard graduates. “Girls” creator and star Lena Dunham, renowned architect Elizabeth Diller (who’s designing the Business School buildings in Manhattanville and the new Medical Center buildings in Washington Heights), and human rights advocate Jimmie Briggs will receive the Barnard Medals of Honor.
Gbowee joins a growing list of high-profile speakers headlining Barnard’s commencement, including President Barack Obama, CC ’83, last year, former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, and actress Meryl Streep.
“Ms. Gbowee’s leadership helped galvanize an entire nation’s women to stand together against violence and end a civil war, and she continues to work tirelessly to eradicate violence against women worldwide,” Barnard President Debora Spar said in a statement.
Commencement takes place May 19 at Radio City Music Hall. More on the medalists after the jump. More »
Women still face inequality in the workplace
Today in the Washington Post, Debora Spar, president of Barnard College, discusses why women are still earning on average 18 percent less than their male counterparts after graduating college.
Spar believes that the inequality is caused by the fact that “the university experience is still an unequal one” and “our higher-education system, for better and for worse, is not designed to focus on the economic consequences of our students’ years on campus.”
Spar states another source of inequality stems from women’s tendencies to “enroll in different kinds of classes, tend to major in less rigorous subjects, and generally head off with less ambitious plans.”
Getting graphic
Mr. Speaker, Mr. Vice President, members of Congress, fellow Americans—51 years ago, John F. Kennedy declared, “It is my task to report the state of the union. To improve it is the task of us all.” Tonight, thanks to the grit and determination of the Columbian people, there is much progress to report.
Thursday was Valentine’s Day, and we got gifts from our lovers and the CU GOP.
Superheroines and the romance of snail mail
Being a female film buff can be kind of upsetting. For example, it’s often illogically assumed that you couldn’t possibly be into blockbusters like this winter’s Django Unchained, because of, like, blood and stuff.
Fortunately, this issue doesn’t always go unaddressed. This past weekend, Barnard hosted the third annual Athena Film Festival, dedicated to showcasing films pertaining to women and leadership. One of these films was “Wonder Women! The Untold Story of American Superheroines.”
Speaking of American superheroines… who didn’t feel a rush of pure and total ecstasy when Beyoncé redeemed herself at the Super Bowl after that unseemly inaugural debacle?
Or perhaps nothing can make you feel anything close to ecstasy because you’re too miserable about the impending death of snail mail, as foreshadowed by the USPS’s recent announcement that it will soon discontinue Saturday’s mail.
To read about these issues and more, check out this week’s issue of The Eye!
Happy Singleton’s Day!
It’s finally our favorite day of the year, where we singletons celebrate our singleness by… doing what we always do each day. What’s up with all the pink and red? Is there some other special occasion happening today? Guess we’ll find out in today’s news.
Read this: The Dems and the CUCR released a joint statement today endorsing marriage equality.
Know this: While costs go up for graduate students, the GSAS financial package has done nothing to rise with it.
Here’s more: Barnard is finally allowing therapeutic animals into their dorms, though there are concerns over allergies and potential neglect of animal care.
File photo