Lady Gaga join in Harvard University
Lady Gaga will be joined by Oprah Winfrey at the unveiling of her 'Born This Way' Foundation, scheduled to take place at Harvard University on February 29th, 2012. The Born This Way Foundation is being launched to tackle the same issues that Lady gaga addresses in the song's lyrics: "self-confidence, well-being, anti-bullying, mentoring and career development through research, education and advocacy."
According to Billboard, the event is scheduled for a feature on Oprah Winfrey's show 'Oprah's Next Chapter' on her Own Tv network. Other attendees and speakers at the event include Deepak Chopra (an author and expert on issues such as spirituality and mid-body medicine) and the US Secretary of Health and Human Services, Kathleen Sebelius. According to the report, the Born This Way Foundation is a joint effort between the John D. & Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation, The California Endowment and The Berkman Center at Harvard, with an aim to fostering "a new culture of kindness, bravery, acceptance and empowerment."
Lady Gaga made an unusually low-key appearance at the Grammy Awards on Sunday evening. Her outfit on the evening of the ceremony included a black veil across her face. Many have assumed this to have been the singer's way of paying her respects to the late Whitney Houston, who was found dead in a hotel room the day before the Grammys took place. The song 'Born This Way' tackles the issues of being accepted the way you are, regardless of factors such as race, sexuality, gender and appearance.
Harvard University’s president, Drew Faust, is posing a $100,000 challenge to students, asking them to find ways to solve big global problems.
Enterprising undergraduate and graduate Harvard students who are interested in social issues will be eligible for the President’s Challenge , a contest to create entrepreneurial solutions to global challenges, the university said yesterday.
“This is an opportunity for students to pursue ideas that seem to be way out there, ideas that some people might dismiss as wacky,’’ said Harvard’s provost, Alan M. Garber. “It’s a time to be creative and to make big bets and to see what they come up with.’’
The President’s Challenge is Faust’s first effort to create a social entrepreneurship competition at Harvard focused solely on student work.
Garber said the idea for a contest to spark innovation by the Harvard student body - a community that has included founders of such companies as Facebook Inc. and Microsoft Corp. - arose from the launching in November of Harvard’s innovation lab, a $20 million incubator for start-ups. The grand prize winner of the President’s Challenge will receive a share of the $100,000 purse, office space in the innovation lab, and access to its staff of experts.
The contest begins this month, after Harvard faculty members determine which five social causes it will ask contestants to address. Harvard will select 10 teams in April and offer those groups support and resources while they hone their proposals. A winner will be named in May.
A similar competition, the Social Venture Business Plan Competition, was launched last year at Northern Illinois University in DeKalb, Ill. In December, a student group calling itself Team Light Up Africa was awarded a $10,000 prize for coming up with a plan to sell generators powered by bicycles or oxen.
Harvard Public Communications & Affairs
Harvard Public Affairs & Communications acts as liaison between the University and its many public audiences, partners, and stakeholders, handling relations with Harvard’s host communities, state and federal governments, and the news media. The department also manages the events and information center, located in Holyoke Center.
The government relations team represents the University’s interests in legislation and regulation affecting higher education and maintains relationships with everyone from key thinkers on the national political scene to regulators to local lawmakers.
The community affairs team nurtures the relationship between the University and its host communities by working closely with local leaders, schools and educators and civic organizations in Boston and Cambridge, as well as other communities where Harvard has a presence.
The communications team manages the University’s outbound communications, serves as a resource to local, national and international media organizations, and manages the University’s online presence. It also provides a range of multimedia and photographic services, and it produces several print and online publications for the University, including harvard.edu and the Harvard University Gazette.
Bobby Kennedy’s grandson Joseph III announces now he will run for US Congress
JOSEPH Kennedy III, the grandson of the late Bobby Kennedy, has announced that he is running for Congress, a move that could be the first step to restoring America's most famous political dynasty's place in Washington.
Following the death of Senator Ted Kennedy in 2009 and the retirement of his son Patrick from Congress in 2011, the Kennedy family was left unrepresented in national politics for the first time in 63 years.
Now the younger Mr Kennedy, the great-nephew of JFK, has said confirmed he will seek election in Massachusetts, his family's tradition power base.
The 31-year-old, who bears a strong resemblance to Bobby, is running for the state's fourth congressional district, a seat now held by Barney Frank, one of US politics' most strident liberal voices.
Speculation of a Kennedy run has mounted since Mr Frank announced in November that he would not seek re-election, and last month Mr Kennedy announced he was forming an exploratory committee, the first sign of an election bid.
Speaking ahead of a of a formal announcement later today, Mr Kennedy said: "I believe this country was founded on a simple idea: that every person deserves to be treated fairly, by each other and by their government, but that's not happening in America anymore."
He enters the race from a law background and worked as a state prosecutor in Massachusetts before resigning last month to focus on his election bid.
A Harvard Law school graduate, he speaks fluent Spanish and spent two years in the Peace Corps - an American volunteering programme that was set started by President Kennedy.
In heavily-Democratic Massachusetts his main challenge will be to overcome any challengers for the party's nomination, rather than defeating an eventual Republican opponent. The affluent district is among the most liberal in the US and there is little chance of the Republicans winning the seat.
No other Democrats have yet put themselves forward.
If Mr Kennedy is eventually elected he will be trailed by constant speculation of that he may mount a presidential bid. His great-uncle was elected to Congress from Massachusetts aged 29, before progressing to the Senate and eventually the White House.
Harvard Idol: Alumni & student Compete in Hollywood
Madison A. Greer ’13 says her dream is to be the next Michael Jackson. On Feb. 28, she might just get that chance.
Greer has been selected as one of three finalists in the annual Harvard ROCKS competition—a singing contest presented by Harvard wood, an artist network whose membership is open to Harvard students, alumni, faculty, and staff.
Kelley N. Purcell ’02, executive director of Harvardwood, said that the competition is meant to promote Harvard-affiliated performers.
“It’s not your average battle of the bands competition,” Purcell said.
For the final round, the contestants must perform live in West Hollywood for a panel including President of Fox Music Robert Kraft, Chief Operating Officer of Live Nation Ben Weeden, and last year’s Harvard ROCKS winner, Rachel A. Brown ’10. The winner will be decided by votes cast at the show and online by ticket-buyers.
Todd A. Forman ’92 and Sara B. Melson ’90 will compete along with Greer in the final round. All three artists said they plan on playing original music for the final performance.
To prepare for the live show, Greer, an English concentrator in Quincy House, said she has been practicing her songs three times a week for three hours.
“It’s me being the performer and the producer and the arranger all in one,” she said.
Greer said that she has always wanted to pursue a career as an artist because her family has a strong musical background.
Greer’s father is a jazz musician, and her mother sings and plays classical piano.
“I’m the girl who always said ‘I want to be a star,’” said Greer. “I have never stopped wanting to do that.”
Greer’s competitors have more than a few years on her and a fair amount of professional music experience.
Forman once played saxophone for Sublime, a ’90s punk band from California. Ultimately, he left behind his musical ambitions to focus on his wife and family, he said.
Forman, who was a member of the Hasty Pudding Theatricals and participated in musical theater while at Harvard, said he has always been passionate about music.
“I wouldn’t say I always wanted to be a professional musician,” said Forman, now a family physician who runs a practice with his mother. “But it has always been a goal of mine to have music be a part of my life.”
Melson chose to pursue acting after college, but she said that her true passion is music.
“I loved acting, but I felt like the things I was doing felt artistically not as inspiring as they could be,” she said. “Spiritually, I had more to say, and I felt like singing might be more of my medium.”
Melson was signed to a record label, but restructuring within the production company led to the cancellation of a publicity campaign for her first album, which was released several years ago.
Melson said Harvard ROCKS will give her another shot to market her music and gain exposure.
Voters are required to purchase a ticket to the final competition or pay the equivalent amount for a ticket online.
The online system is now open, and Greer said she has been encouraging her peers to vote for her.
Greer said she thinks that the ticket price—$6 for Harvardwood members and $8 for non-members—might deter students from voting.
“I’m not going to force people to pay,” she said. “I’m just trying to be as understanding as possible and just asking people to do this favor for me.”
The Harvardwood web site calls the contest’s grand prize, which includes soundtrack consideration from Fox Music and performance consideration from LiveNation, the “ultimate music industry prize package.”
The three artists said they are grateful for the opportunity that Harvard ROCKS has given them.
“It’s a great way to show that Harvard does rock,” Forman said.
—Jane Seo contributed to the reporting of this story.
—Staff writer Eliza M. Nguyen can be reached at enguyen@college.harvard.edu.
Fellow Charged Harvard teaching arrested for Sexual Assault
Harvard teaching fellow Bradley J. Spencer was arrested earlier this month on charges that he sexually assaulted a woman on the Red Line.
At a hearing Monday, he pleaded not guilty to charges of indecent assault and battery, according to Cara O’Brien, a spokesperson for the Middlesex County District Attorney’s office.
According to the Cambridge Chronicle, Spencer, who is a teaching fellow in the Near Eastern and Languages and Civilizations Department, was charged with the assault of a 32-year-old Cambridge resident. The victim reported that she noticed a man standing unusually close to her on the MBTA. She then felt something push against her crotch and looked down to see a hand close to her crotch.
The victim said that she was too surprised to react to Spencer’s alleged assault but said that she managed to take a picture with her cell phone before getting off the T and notifying the police, according to the Chronicle.
Spencer’s bail was set at $1,000, according to O’Brien, and he paid it and was released after his arraignment Monday. Spencer was returned to jail following a hearing Tuesday morning, on $5,000 bail this time with the condition that, if he is released, he is to stay away from the MBTA and other forms of public transportation. During the hearing, a probation officer informed Judge Sevelin Singleton III that the probation office would be able to outfit Spencer with an electronic tracking bracelet. Singleton ordered Spencer to appear in court again Friday morning, when he will receive such a bracelet.
Spencer’s defense attorney, Steven Linehan, declined to comment.
Spencer, 36, is a NELC graduate student studying Semitic philology. This year, Spencer taught a section for the course Ancient Near East 104: “Babylon.” Spencer will not be teaching next semester according to an emailed statement from University spokesperson Jeff Neal.
“Generally speaking, in cases where a student has been accused of a serious crime, that student is often asked to leave campus during the course of the investigation and legal proceedings, pending their outcome,” Neal wrote.
Students in Spencer’s section characterized him as considerate and able to run section well.
“I was a little surprised because he really is such a nice guy,” said Tyler G. Funk ’12, a student in Spencer’s section. “In his sections he does a great job of running the entire class.”
Paul A. Bowden ’13, another student in his section, said that his teaching method was not anything out of the ordinary.
“He was a little weird—a couple of friends in the section had agreed he was strange,” Bowden said. “But everyone at Harvard is a little weird, so I didn’t find it out of the norm for him to be bizarre.”
Students also described Spencer as religious, noting his tendencies to get sidetracked by religious discussions.
“A couple times half the section was about him going over stuff in the Bible,” Bowden said.
Peter Machinist, the director of undergraduate studies for NELC, declined to comment since the matter is under criminal investigation.
—Julie M. Zauzmer contributed reporting.
—Staff writer Matthew M. Beck can be reached at mbeck@college.harvard.edu.
—Staff writer Mercer R. Cook can be reached at mcook@college.harvard.edu.
—Staff writer Nathalie R. Miraval can be reached at nmiraval@college.harvard.edu.
Some Librarians Early Retirement offer by University
According to Billboard, the event is scheduled for a feature on Oprah Winfrey's show 'Oprah's Next Chapter' on her Own Tv network. Other attendees and speakers at the event include Deepak Chopra (an author and expert on issues such as spirituality and mid-body medicine) and the US Secretary of Health and Human Services, Kathleen Sebelius. According to the report, the Born This Way Foundation is a joint effort between the John D. & Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation, The California Endowment and The Berkman Center at Harvard, with an aim to fostering "a new culture of kindness, bravery, acceptance and empowerment."
Lady Gaga made an unusually low-key appearance at the Grammy Awards on Sunday evening. Her outfit on the evening of the ceremony included a black veil across her face. Many have assumed this to have been the singer's way of paying her respects to the late Whitney Houston, who was found dead in a hotel room the day before the Grammys took place. The song 'Born This Way' tackles the issues of being accepted the way you are, regardless of factors such as race, sexuality, gender and appearance.
Linsanity! Unfancied Harvard graduate is talk of NBA
Jeremy Lin is a 6ft 3in NBA superstar. While at high school he captained his Palo Alto side to a state championship before heading on to a famous university and NBA fame. His could be the story of any high-flying, US basketball hero. But Lin's ascent has been one of the most unlikely in sport. On Tuesday, Lin helped his team, the New York Knicks, beat the Toronto Raptors with 27 points, 11 assists and a last-second, game-winning three-pointer.
After just five starts – the Knicks have won all five – Lin has become a phenomenon. Before the Raptors game, he had scored 20 plus points in four and a half games including a comic-book hero 38-point showing against the Lakers.
The Taiwanese-American has scored more points in his first five starts than any player in the modern game. On Tuesday he bounced on to the cover of Sports Illustrated. But the reason Lin is a star isn't because of his talent but because his story is one of perseverance against the odds.
The phenomenon has been dubbed – and marketed by the Knicks as – "Linsanity". But it hasn't been easy. Despite having captained his high school to a state championship Lin was snubbed for a scholarship by the top athletic universities. Instead, he headed to Harvard to study economics. While there, Lin set scoring and defensive records, was twice named to the Ivy League team of the year and led the Crimson to a record number of wins.
Still the basketball world wasn't convinced and Lin was left out of the draft system which feeds the top college players into the professional leagues.
After a brief spell at Golden State Warriors Lin was picked up by New York as a back-up in December. His standing was such that just over a week ago, he was sleeping on his dentistry student brother's couch in Manhattan.
Last Monday, by sheer fluke, I went to my first NBA game – the Knicks hosting Utah Jazz at Madison Square Garden. This was the beginning of Linsanity – the player's first NBA start. Even as basketball ingénue it was easy to appreciate his talents. Lin was exceptional at feeding his team mates and – if he couldn't – dribbling through to score. His presence was electric. I assumed Lin had starred all season. It wasn't until I failed to buy a Lin T-shirt because they hadn't actually made any that it was explained to me how unknown he was.
They've got shirts now. And the Knicks' management aren't the only ones taking advantage. For a league damaged by 2011's strike, Linsanity is a dream opportunity to open the sport up to new demographics.
After the retirement of Chinese NBA star Yao Ming, Lin could be the perfect opportunity for the NBA to maintain a presence in basketball-mad China. Yesterday, The New York Times reported that a Communist official – hoping to gazump Taiwan – had traced Lin's family back to the city of Jiaxing. The importance of his roots has been debated by fans and pundits alike. Was Lin passed over because of his ethnicity?
Another talking point is his religiosity. It's led to comparisons with the NFL's Tim Tebow, the Denver quarterback who's kneeling to God celebration has made him a hero to US Christians. Like Tebow, Lin has remained humble and stressed the importance of the team. After sinking the Raptors, he told reporters: "It's not because of me, it's because we're coming together as a team." It's perhaps Lin's ordinariness that has made him a hero – but his comic- book style exploits are anything but.
Harvard challenges students thinking big
Solution to a global problem will get a $100,000 prize
The Taiwanese-American has scored more points in his first five starts than any player in the modern game. On Tuesday he bounced on to the cover of Sports Illustrated. But the reason Lin is a star isn't because of his talent but because his story is one of perseverance against the odds.
The phenomenon has been dubbed – and marketed by the Knicks as – "Linsanity". But it hasn't been easy. Despite having captained his high school to a state championship Lin was snubbed for a scholarship by the top athletic universities. Instead, he headed to Harvard to study economics. While there, Lin set scoring and defensive records, was twice named to the Ivy League team of the year and led the Crimson to a record number of wins.
Still the basketball world wasn't convinced and Lin was left out of the draft system which feeds the top college players into the professional leagues.
After a brief spell at Golden State Warriors Lin was picked up by New York as a back-up in December. His standing was such that just over a week ago, he was sleeping on his dentistry student brother's couch in Manhattan.
Last Monday, by sheer fluke, I went to my first NBA game – the Knicks hosting Utah Jazz at Madison Square Garden. This was the beginning of Linsanity – the player's first NBA start. Even as basketball ingénue it was easy to appreciate his talents. Lin was exceptional at feeding his team mates and – if he couldn't – dribbling through to score. His presence was electric. I assumed Lin had starred all season. It wasn't until I failed to buy a Lin T-shirt because they hadn't actually made any that it was explained to me how unknown he was.
They've got shirts now. And the Knicks' management aren't the only ones taking advantage. For a league damaged by 2011's strike, Linsanity is a dream opportunity to open the sport up to new demographics.
After the retirement of Chinese NBA star Yao Ming, Lin could be the perfect opportunity for the NBA to maintain a presence in basketball-mad China. Yesterday, The New York Times reported that a Communist official – hoping to gazump Taiwan – had traced Lin's family back to the city of Jiaxing. The importance of his roots has been debated by fans and pundits alike. Was Lin passed over because of his ethnicity?
Another talking point is his religiosity. It's led to comparisons with the NFL's Tim Tebow, the Denver quarterback who's kneeling to God celebration has made him a hero to US Christians. Like Tebow, Lin has remained humble and stressed the importance of the team. After sinking the Raptors, he told reporters: "It's not because of me, it's because we're coming together as a team." It's perhaps Lin's ordinariness that has made him a hero – but his comic- book style exploits are anything but.
Harvard challenges students thinking big
Solution to a global problem will get a $100,000 prize
Enterprising undergraduate and graduate Harvard students who are interested in social issues will be eligible for the President’s Challenge , a contest to create entrepreneurial solutions to global challenges, the university said yesterday.
“This is an opportunity for students to pursue ideas that seem to be way out there, ideas that some people might dismiss as wacky,’’ said Harvard’s provost, Alan M. Garber. “It’s a time to be creative and to make big bets and to see what they come up with.’’
Harvard joins other universities and colleges in Massachusetts, and across the country, that run competitions to promote entrepreneurial enterprise.
The Massachusetts Institute of Technology has been holding its $100K Entrepreneurship Competition, a business contest for students and MIT researchers, for 22 years. The University of Massachusetts Amherst has its Innovation Challenge for students and young alumni with ideas for start-ups. Other organizations, such as the nonprofit MassChallenge in Boston, operate programs designed to aid investment in early-stage businesses.The President’s Challenge is Faust’s first effort to create a social entrepreneurship competition at Harvard focused solely on student work.
Garber said the idea for a contest to spark innovation by the Harvard student body - a community that has included founders of such companies as Facebook Inc. and Microsoft Corp. - arose from the launching in November of Harvard’s innovation lab, a $20 million incubator for start-ups. The grand prize winner of the President’s Challenge will receive a share of the $100,000 purse, office space in the innovation lab, and access to its staff of experts.
The contest begins this month, after Harvard faculty members determine which five social causes it will ask contestants to address. Harvard will select 10 teams in April and offer those groups support and resources while they hone their proposals. A winner will be named in May.
A similar competition, the Social Venture Business Plan Competition, was launched last year at Northern Illinois University in DeKalb, Ill. In December, a student group calling itself Team Light Up Africa was awarded a $10,000 prize for coming up with a plan to sell generators powered by bicycles or oxen.
Harvard Public Communications & Affairs
Harvard Public Affairs & Communications acts as liaison between the University and its many public audiences, partners, and stakeholders, handling relations with Harvard’s host communities, state and federal governments, and the news media. The department also manages the events and information center, located in Holyoke Center.
The government relations team represents the University’s interests in legislation and regulation affecting higher education and maintains relationships with everyone from key thinkers on the national political scene to regulators to local lawmakers.
The community affairs team nurtures the relationship between the University and its host communities by working closely with local leaders, schools and educators and civic organizations in Boston and Cambridge, as well as other communities where Harvard has a presence.
The communications team manages the University’s outbound communications, serves as a resource to local, national and international media organizations, and manages the University’s online presence. It also provides a range of multimedia and photographic services, and it produces several print and online publications for the University, including harvard.edu and the Harvard University Gazette.
Bobby Kennedy’s grandson Joseph III announces now he will run for US Congress
JOSEPH Kennedy III, the grandson of the late Bobby Kennedy, has announced that he is running for Congress, a move that could be the first step to restoring America's most famous political dynasty's place in Washington.
Following the death of Senator Ted Kennedy in 2009 and the retirement of his son Patrick from Congress in 2011, the Kennedy family was left unrepresented in national politics for the first time in 63 years.
Now the younger Mr Kennedy, the great-nephew of JFK, has said confirmed he will seek election in Massachusetts, his family's tradition power base.
The 31-year-old, who bears a strong resemblance to Bobby, is running for the state's fourth congressional district, a seat now held by Barney Frank, one of US politics' most strident liberal voices.
Speculation of a Kennedy run has mounted since Mr Frank announced in November that he would not seek re-election, and last month Mr Kennedy announced he was forming an exploratory committee, the first sign of an election bid.
Speaking ahead of a of a formal announcement later today, Mr Kennedy said: "I believe this country was founded on a simple idea: that every person deserves to be treated fairly, by each other and by their government, but that's not happening in America anymore."
He enters the race from a law background and worked as a state prosecutor in Massachusetts before resigning last month to focus on his election bid.
A Harvard Law school graduate, he speaks fluent Spanish and spent two years in the Peace Corps - an American volunteering programme that was set started by President Kennedy.
In heavily-Democratic Massachusetts his main challenge will be to overcome any challengers for the party's nomination, rather than defeating an eventual Republican opponent. The affluent district is among the most liberal in the US and there is little chance of the Republicans winning the seat.
No other Democrats have yet put themselves forward.
If Mr Kennedy is eventually elected he will be trailed by constant speculation of that he may mount a presidential bid. His great-uncle was elected to Congress from Massachusetts aged 29, before progressing to the Senate and eventually the White House.
Harvard Idol: Alumni & student Compete in Hollywood
Madison A. Greer ’13 says her dream is to be the next Michael Jackson. On Feb. 28, she might just get that chance.
Greer has been selected as one of three finalists in the annual Harvard ROCKS competition—a singing contest presented by Harvard wood, an artist network whose membership is open to Harvard students, alumni, faculty, and staff.
Kelley N. Purcell ’02, executive director of Harvardwood, said that the competition is meant to promote Harvard-affiliated performers.
“It’s not your average battle of the bands competition,” Purcell said.
For the final round, the contestants must perform live in West Hollywood for a panel including President of Fox Music Robert Kraft, Chief Operating Officer of Live Nation Ben Weeden, and last year’s Harvard ROCKS winner, Rachel A. Brown ’10. The winner will be decided by votes cast at the show and online by ticket-buyers.
Todd A. Forman ’92 and Sara B. Melson ’90 will compete along with Greer in the final round. All three artists said they plan on playing original music for the final performance.
To prepare for the live show, Greer, an English concentrator in Quincy House, said she has been practicing her songs three times a week for three hours.
“It’s me being the performer and the producer and the arranger all in one,” she said.
Greer said that she has always wanted to pursue a career as an artist because her family has a strong musical background.
Greer’s father is a jazz musician, and her mother sings and plays classical piano.
“I’m the girl who always said ‘I want to be a star,’” said Greer. “I have never stopped wanting to do that.”
Greer’s competitors have more than a few years on her and a fair amount of professional music experience.
Forman once played saxophone for Sublime, a ’90s punk band from California. Ultimately, he left behind his musical ambitions to focus on his wife and family, he said.
Forman, who was a member of the Hasty Pudding Theatricals and participated in musical theater while at Harvard, said he has always been passionate about music.
“I wouldn’t say I always wanted to be a professional musician,” said Forman, now a family physician who runs a practice with his mother. “But it has always been a goal of mine to have music be a part of my life.”
Melson chose to pursue acting after college, but she said that her true passion is music.
“I loved acting, but I felt like the things I was doing felt artistically not as inspiring as they could be,” she said. “Spiritually, I had more to say, and I felt like singing might be more of my medium.”
Melson was signed to a record label, but restructuring within the production company led to the cancellation of a publicity campaign for her first album, which was released several years ago.
Melson said Harvard ROCKS will give her another shot to market her music and gain exposure.
Voters are required to purchase a ticket to the final competition or pay the equivalent amount for a ticket online.
The online system is now open, and Greer said she has been encouraging her peers to vote for her.
Greer said she thinks that the ticket price—$6 for Harvardwood members and $8 for non-members—might deter students from voting.
“I’m not going to force people to pay,” she said. “I’m just trying to be as understanding as possible and just asking people to do this favor for me.”
The Harvardwood web site calls the contest’s grand prize, which includes soundtrack consideration from Fox Music and performance consideration from LiveNation, the “ultimate music industry prize package.”
The three artists said they are grateful for the opportunity that Harvard ROCKS has given them.
“It’s a great way to show that Harvard does rock,” Forman said.
—Jane Seo contributed to the reporting of this story.
—Staff writer Eliza M. Nguyen can be reached at enguyen@college.harvard.edu.
Fellow Charged Harvard teaching arrested for Sexual Assault
Harvard teaching fellow Bradley J. Spencer was arrested earlier this month on charges that he sexually assaulted a woman on the Red Line.
At a hearing Monday, he pleaded not guilty to charges of indecent assault and battery, according to Cara O’Brien, a spokesperson for the Middlesex County District Attorney’s office.
According to the Cambridge Chronicle, Spencer, who is a teaching fellow in the Near Eastern and Languages and Civilizations Department, was charged with the assault of a 32-year-old Cambridge resident. The victim reported that she noticed a man standing unusually close to her on the MBTA. She then felt something push against her crotch and looked down to see a hand close to her crotch.
The victim said that she was too surprised to react to Spencer’s alleged assault but said that she managed to take a picture with her cell phone before getting off the T and notifying the police, according to the Chronicle.
Spencer’s bail was set at $1,000, according to O’Brien, and he paid it and was released after his arraignment Monday. Spencer was returned to jail following a hearing Tuesday morning, on $5,000 bail this time with the condition that, if he is released, he is to stay away from the MBTA and other forms of public transportation. During the hearing, a probation officer informed Judge Sevelin Singleton III that the probation office would be able to outfit Spencer with an electronic tracking bracelet. Singleton ordered Spencer to appear in court again Friday morning, when he will receive such a bracelet.
Spencer’s defense attorney, Steven Linehan, declined to comment.
Spencer, 36, is a NELC graduate student studying Semitic philology. This year, Spencer taught a section for the course Ancient Near East 104: “Babylon.” Spencer will not be teaching next semester according to an emailed statement from University spokesperson Jeff Neal.
“Generally speaking, in cases where a student has been accused of a serious crime, that student is often asked to leave campus during the course of the investigation and legal proceedings, pending their outcome,” Neal wrote.
Students in Spencer’s section characterized him as considerate and able to run section well.
“I was a little surprised because he really is such a nice guy,” said Tyler G. Funk ’12, a student in Spencer’s section. “In his sections he does a great job of running the entire class.”
Paul A. Bowden ’13, another student in his section, said that his teaching method was not anything out of the ordinary.
“He was a little weird—a couple of friends in the section had agreed he was strange,” Bowden said. “But everyone at Harvard is a little weird, so I didn’t find it out of the norm for him to be bizarre.”
Students also described Spencer as religious, noting his tendencies to get sidetracked by religious discussions.
“A couple times half the section was about him going over stuff in the Bible,” Bowden said.
Peter Machinist, the director of undergraduate studies for NELC, declined to comment since the matter is under criminal investigation.
—Julie M. Zauzmer contributed reporting.
—Staff writer Matthew M. Beck can be reached at mbeck@college.harvard.edu.
—Staff writer Mercer R. Cook can be reached at mcook@college.harvard.edu.
—Staff writer Nathalie R. Miraval can be reached at nmiraval@college.harvard.edu.
Some Librarians Early Retirement offer by University
The University will offer a Voluntary Early Retirement Incentive Program to library employees 55 years and older with 10 years of service under their belts, according to a University spokesperson.
Those who choose to accept the offer will receive six months’ pay, plus two additional weeks’ pay for every year of employment beyond 10 years. An employee cannot receive more than one year’s worth of salary under the package.
Approximately 275 employees are eligible for the plan. There are 930 full-time employees within the University library system.
Once they receive the details of their personal plan, workers will have 46 calendar days to decide whether or not to accept it.
Workers were informed of the program via email early afternoon Monday.
The plan is part of an ongoing restructuring of the University library system, which seeks to unify Harvard’s 73 currently independent libraries.
Harvard University Library Executive Director Helen Shenton had previously said at a town hall meeting with library employees that “the Library workforce will be smaller than it is now.”
In an email to the Crimson, a university spokesperson said that with improvement to the library system in mind, “the University is implementing a generous, voluntary early retirement program that will both offer incentives to qualifying employees who wish to retire and help the library meet the needs of its new organization.”
Bill Jaeger, director of the Harvard Union of Clerical and Technical Workers, said the offer was just another ambiguous message from the administration in a process that it has not handled well.
“It’s one more step that seems premature and that is poorly considered and not broadly enough consulted about,” Jaeger said. “There’s a record-breaking level of turmoil and anxiety among the staff. This just adds to the confusion.”
Jaeger said that this announcement did nothing to address the fact that, according to HUCTW members, the library is understaffed as it is.
“At this point, the case hasn’t been made for staff reductions,” Jaeger said. He added that if the library does not have a solid plan going forward, this program could cause it to lose money.
He also said that the possibility of a Voluntary Early Retirement Incentive Program was never mentioned in discussions between the union and the library.
“It’s really hard for the library staff to know what to make of the early retirement offer,” Jaeger said. “The big question that crowds out all the others is, ‘Why?’”
Karen L. O’Brien, a library assistant who noted that she was too young to take the offer, said that she thought that the announcement mirrored the steps the library took in the past when it sought staff reductions.
O’Brien said she thought that more employees were likely to accept the early retirement program if they had been previously scared by the threat of layoffs.
Since Shenton’s announcement, some library employees have taken to the streets to protest the possibility of layoffs, picketing outside of a meeting for library staff members and staging multiple public demonstrations.
Sunday night, members of Occupy Harvard took over Lamont Library Café, pledging to stay in the café until 10 p.m. on Friday in order to protest library staff reductions.
Andrew J. Pope, a doctoral student in history and Occupy Harvard supporter, said that the early retirement program leaves library employees with few options.
“If they don’t take the offer and are laid off, the family will be in a dire financial situation,” Pope said,
Rudi E. Batzell, another doctoral student in history who also supports Occupy, echoed Pope’s concerns.
“[The Voluntary Early Retirement Incentive Program] forces [workers] to make an economic decision without any sense of what their alternatives are,” Batzell said.
Sandra Y. L. Korn ’14, a Crimson associate editorial executive and a member of the Student Labor Action Movement, was skeptical about the early retirement program’s potential effectiveness.
“I think it’s stupid,” Korn said. “Harvard can’t completely revamp its library system in the next 46 days.”
Those who choose to accept the offer will receive six months’ pay, plus two additional weeks’ pay for every year of employment beyond 10 years. An employee cannot receive more than one year’s worth of salary under the package.
Approximately 275 employees are eligible for the plan. There are 930 full-time employees within the University library system.
Once they receive the details of their personal plan, workers will have 46 calendar days to decide whether or not to accept it.
Workers were informed of the program via email early afternoon Monday.
The plan is part of an ongoing restructuring of the University library system, which seeks to unify Harvard’s 73 currently independent libraries.
Harvard University Library Executive Director Helen Shenton had previously said at a town hall meeting with library employees that “the Library workforce will be smaller than it is now.”
In an email to the Crimson, a university spokesperson said that with improvement to the library system in mind, “the University is implementing a generous, voluntary early retirement program that will both offer incentives to qualifying employees who wish to retire and help the library meet the needs of its new organization.”
Bill Jaeger, director of the Harvard Union of Clerical and Technical Workers, said the offer was just another ambiguous message from the administration in a process that it has not handled well.
“It’s one more step that seems premature and that is poorly considered and not broadly enough consulted about,” Jaeger said. “There’s a record-breaking level of turmoil and anxiety among the staff. This just adds to the confusion.”
Jaeger said that this announcement did nothing to address the fact that, according to HUCTW members, the library is understaffed as it is.
“At this point, the case hasn’t been made for staff reductions,” Jaeger said. He added that if the library does not have a solid plan going forward, this program could cause it to lose money.
He also said that the possibility of a Voluntary Early Retirement Incentive Program was never mentioned in discussions between the union and the library.
“It’s really hard for the library staff to know what to make of the early retirement offer,” Jaeger said. “The big question that crowds out all the others is, ‘Why?’”
Karen L. O’Brien, a library assistant who noted that she was too young to take the offer, said that she thought that the announcement mirrored the steps the library took in the past when it sought staff reductions.
O’Brien said she thought that more employees were likely to accept the early retirement program if they had been previously scared by the threat of layoffs.
Since Shenton’s announcement, some library employees have taken to the streets to protest the possibility of layoffs, picketing outside of a meeting for library staff members and staging multiple public demonstrations.
Sunday night, members of Occupy Harvard took over Lamont Library Café, pledging to stay in the café until 10 p.m. on Friday in order to protest library staff reductions.
Andrew J. Pope, a doctoral student in history and Occupy Harvard supporter, said that the early retirement program leaves library employees with few options.
“If they don’t take the offer and are laid off, the family will be in a dire financial situation,” Pope said,
Rudi E. Batzell, another doctoral student in history who also supports Occupy, echoed Pope’s concerns.
“[The Voluntary Early Retirement Incentive Program] forces [workers] to make an economic decision without any sense of what their alternatives are,” Batzell said.
Sandra Y. L. Korn ’14, a Crimson associate editorial executive and a member of the Student Labor Action Movement, was skeptical about the early retirement program’s potential effectiveness.
“I think it’s stupid,” Korn said. “Harvard can’t completely revamp its library system in the next 46 days.”
The University has said it will provide more information on staff reductions over the coming weeks.
—Jane Seo contributed to the reporting of this story.
—Staff writer Hana N. Rouse can be reached at hrouse@college.harvard.edu.
—Staff writer Samuel Y. Weinstock can be reached at sweinstock@college.harvard.edu.
—Staff writer Justin C. Worland can be reached at jworland@college.harvard.edu.
—Jane Seo contributed to the reporting of this story.
—Staff writer Hana N. Rouse can be reached at hrouse@college.harvard.edu.
—Staff writer Samuel Y. Weinstock can be reached at sweinstock@college.harvard.edu.
—Staff writer Justin C. Worland can be reached at jworland@college.harvard.edu.
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