Deirdre Foley-Mendelssohn ’01 takes editor role at Harper's magazine.

Deirdre started a new job last month as a senior editor at Harper’s magazine. She has previously worked as a senior editor at The Paris Review and as an assistant editor at The New Yorker. When she’s not toiling over manuscripts, Deirdre can be found in the West Village petting her cat, Chairman Meow, or running on the Hudson, which still doesn't quite compare to the trails around York. 



Kari Mansager '99 receives Congressional Award for Violence Prevention Program

Kari is the director of UC Merced's Violence Prevention Program, which received the "Allied Profession" award from the Congressional Victims' Rights Caucus earlier this spring. The program began in March 2010, and its outreach has been on a constant climb ever since. There has been a significant increase in the reporting of sexual violence, dating/domestic violence and stalking crimes on campus to law enforcement, which Kari attributes to the close relationship between campus and community police officers and the Violence Prevention Program Campus Advocate.

"Before our program existed, there were about two reports per year, whereas last year we had 27 survivors report to campus or community law enforcement," Kari  explained. "Our constituents know that these behaviors are not OK, they know where to go for help, and they know they will be supported by their community."

The program accounts for significant increases in the number of clients served, which has more than doubled — from 23 in 2010 to 56 in 2011. In 2011, 98% of incoming undergraduates attended mandatory educational programs at the start of the semester, and more students engaged with the program’s educational outreach efforts throughout the year — 4,045 compared with 725 in 2010.

"We talk about these issues in a way that is positive and proactive and we make it clear that it is everyone’s responsibility to help prevent these crimes." Kari and her colleague, Campus Advocate, Patricia Bauer, traveled to Washington, D.C. to receive the award. Read the full story here

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Hussein Elbakri '11 has article published in Columbia Political Review

Hussein is finishing his first year at Columbia University where he is majoring in political science and philosophy. His article, "Modest Proposal: Misdiagnosis. Rethinking the Healthcare Debate," examines the current impasse in the debate over the role of government in providing healthcare.  He ends his piece with the following petition:

 "So let us move beyond empty platitudes and tackle the true controversies. Let us question whether Medicare should be means-tested, whether one should have to work in order to receive Medicaid, and whether those who make poor lifestyle choices should be penalized for them. The health care system, as it stands now, is just as sick as the people it is tasked to protect. Treatment must come not in the form of panacea pills, but rather painstaking surgery to remove unnecessary, cancerous growth. We must recognize that money is the lifeblood of the system and must channel its flow productively. Before we can accomplish any of this, we need our leaders to debate the issue substantively, which may be the most difficult task of all." 

The Columbia Political Review is the magazine of the Columnbia Political Union, a multi-partisan student organization that seeks to enhance involvement in the political process and foster political discourse.Click here to read the full article.

Campus Visitors

Home on Spring Break from Tufts, Lucia Smith '09 was on campus to say hello and also help out with an Admissions event (thanks Lucia!).  Lucia is pursuing a degree in Biology with an interest in molecular animation. She's also very involved with the Tufts campus chapter of Timmy Global Health and has made three trips to Guatemala to work on projects related to health access for those who need it most.  

 Hans Lee '01 spent lunch hour speaking to the Young Entrepreneurs Club about his experience taking an idea from concept to successful business. There's nothing like advice from a seasoned alumnus.

Class of 88 visitors, Jaqueline Scott (Maxner), Tina Giuliani (Morago), and Patrick Costello came back to say hello and rediscover some of their favorite campus spots. A stop in Mr. Hall's classroom revealed  "deep thoughts" carved in the paint of the heater still remain. Memories. . .

Jeremy Blalock '10 part of winning team at "Big Ideas @ Berkeley" competition

Politify, a web-based tool that quantifies the personal financial impacts of various political scenarios,  received a $20,000 grant as first place winner under the Information Technology category of the "Big Ideas @ Berkeley" competition earlier this month. Since its launch in February during the busy presidential primary season, the nonpartisan website has already generated more than 160,000 forecasts for users and caught the attention of congressmen and representatives from both parties. 

As cofounder and CTO, Jeremy was the lead engineer on the project, and built the online interface, as well as aided in the design process for Politify.

The winners, Jeremy and cofounder Nikita Bier, will use their prize to further develop their tool, and create a separate tool that allows people to act as policy makers, and visualize how their policies would impact different income groups, zip codes, and individuals. "We've put a lot of effort into the project so far, and winning the modest sum of prize money will allow us to continue working on the project full time over summer," Jeremy explains.

"Big Ideas @ Berkeley" is an annual prize competition that provides funding, advice, and encouragement to interdisciplinary teams of students at UC Berkeley and partnering universities. The contest inspires innovative and high-impact student projects aimed at solving the world’s most pressing problems. Read more about Jeremy's project and the competition here.