Green Haven Prison Reunion brings together past and present participants from Vassar, prisons

Green Haven Reunion from The Miscellany News on Vimeo.

One of Vassar's many unique academic programs involves the Green Haven Prison. For three decades, the College's Africana Studies and Sociology programs have allowed students to study the prison system from all angles. Students are able to travel to local prisons, and talk to incarcerated individuals about their experiences. Check out this video about the program!

Keep them coming!

Dear readers,

Thank you so much for all of the thoughtful questions about Vassar. I hope that my answers are helping to clarify your colleges choices this April.

I'm receiving dozens and dozens of e-mails from prospective students each day, so I might be falling a little behind! I will usually respond to your questions within 36 hours of receiving them (unless I need to do some additional research to get the answers). In the mean time, check out some of my "Reader questions" posted below. In this section, I post general answers to some of the more common or interesting questions that I receive.

Thanks for reading and for considering Vassar! It's an amazing place. Keep your terrific questions coming!

Brian

Reader question: How will Vassar prepare me for law school?

"You're pre-law. How does that work at Vassar? Are many students there pre-law? What is that like in a liberal arts setting? Is there coursework at Vassar to prepare me for top-level law schools?"

Good question! I am indeed pre-law. When I entered Vassar, I knew for sure that there were two subjects I wanted to pursue: history and legal studies. But as a prospective student, I quickly realized that very few undergraduate institutions offer legal studies as a major (or even as a department). Even the idea of "pre-law" seemed very confusing; if there's no "law" department, how can one prepare oneself for law school?

As it turns out, law schools do not give priority to students with degrees in "Law and Society" or "Legal Studies." One admissions counselor that I spoke with even said that these types of pseudo-law majors were looked down upon by many top law schools. "You'll learn about the law in law school," he told me. "While you're still an undergraduate, law schools want you to focus on critical thinking, close reading and deep research." Translation: don't worry about seeking out a college that offers you tons of coursework in legal studies.

The way that pre-law works at Vassar (and at most other small liberal arts colleges) is that "pre-law" is not itself a major. "Pre-law" is nothing official; it simply means that you are a student interested in law school. Unlike pre-med, there are no specific courses that you must take in order to be considered. To be competitive, students hoping to attend medical school are required to take specific classes in biology, chemistry and mathematics. But students going for law school have much more open-ended options. A Vassar graduate last year who went to Georgetown Law was an Art History major; another alumnus who went to Yale Law was an Anthropology major; my friend Andrew is an Economics major who will be attending University of Maryland School of Law in the fall.

The bottom line: as you choose your undergraduate college this April, don't focus on which school has the most legal-sounding major. It won't make your application stand out; in fact, it may make you look single-minded or not well-rounded. Instead, find a subject that you really enjoy. Pre-law students tend to gravitate toward Economics, English, History, Political Science and Sociology—but you certainly don't have to limit yourself.

With that said, Vassar does offer many courses that explore the law and legal issues. Though these classes won't necessarily ensure that you're admitted to the top law schools, they will give you experience in asking legal questions, and they might help you decide whether law is right for you.

Here are just some examples of law-related courses that Vassar offers from the Catalogue:

Economics 238, Law and Economics: This course uses economics to analyze legal rules and institutions. The primary focus is on the classic areas of common law: property, contracts, and torts. Some time is also spent on criminal law and/or constitutional law (e.g., voting, public choice, and administration). Much attention is paid to developing formal models to analyze conflict and bargaining, and applying those models to specific cases. Topics include the allocation of rights, legal remedies, bargaining and transaction costs, regulation versus liability, uncertainty, and the litigation process. Time permitting, the course may also include discussion of gun control, the death penalty, federalism, and competition among jurisdictions.

Economics 275, Money and Banking: Money and Banking covers the structure of financial institutions, their role in the provision of money and credit, and the overall importance of these institutions in the economy. The course includes discussion of money, interest rates, financial market structure, bank operations and regulation, and the structure of the banking sector. The course also covers central banks, monetary policy, and international exchange as it relates to monetary policy and the banking sector. The ultimate goal is to provide a deeper understanding of the structure of financial markets, the reasons why it is optimal for these markets to be well functioning, and the key barriers to this optimal outcome.

Earth Science 111, Environmental Justice: Exploration of the roles that race, gender, and class play in contemporary environmental issues and the geology that underlies them. Examination of the power of governments, corporations and science to influence the physical and human environment. We critique the traditional environmental movement, study cases of environmental racism, and appreciate how basic geological knowledge can assist communities in creating healthful surroundings. Examples come from urban and rural settings in the United States and abroad and are informed by feminist analysis.

Political Science 242, Law, Justice and Politics: An analysis of the interrelationships between law and politics in civil and criminal spheres in the United States, focusing on the role of the police, courtroom participants, and prison officials. Special emphasis is given to decision making in criminal law at the local level—e.g., pretrial negotiations, bail, and sentencing.

Political Science 243, Constitutional Law: Leading decisions of the Supreme Court interpreting the Constitution of the United States, with special reference to the powers of government and the rights of individuals.

Political Science 314, The Politics of the Public and the Private: This course examines the political significance of public and private in the contemporary US. Theoretical arguments as well as specific issues and contexts within which debates about public and private unfold are analyzed. Of particular thematic concern is, the privatization of governmental responsibilities and the "public" and "private" rights claims of individuals and communities. Among the issues studied are privatization of the US military and prisons, gated and other "private" communities and their relationship to the larger political communities within which they exist, intellectual property and the public domain, and the "privacy" of personal decisions.

Political Science 343, Seminar on Constitutional Theory: This seminar focuses on some core problems pertaining to constitutional interpretation, examining questions of constitutional theory and interpretation as they relate to issues of equality and full citizenship. The course discusses the nature and function of the Constitution, explores theories about how the Constitution should be interpreted, and examines the methods that interpreters use to decipher the meanings of constitutional provisions. These concerns are addressed by focusing on various dimensions of constitutional theories and decisions pertaining to questions related to anti-discrimination law. Some of the issues covered include standards of judicial review, Supreme Court interpretations of equal protection, the constitutional protection of groups as well as individuals, and the appropriateness of constitutional protections rooted in color-blind and gender-blind principles.

Political Science 385, Families, Politics and the Law: This course examines emerging perspectives on family forms and state regulation of families that have appeared in response to such developments as same-sex marriage and parenting; multi-racial families created by intermarriage and by transracial and intercountry adoption; increasing numbers of single-parent households; and reproductive technologies that enable people to procreate by using donated eggs and sperm and/or hired gestational service (and in the future, perhaps, by cloning). The course explores these issues from the perspective of theories of social justice that put concerns of race, economic class, and gender at the center of their analysis.

Political Science 388, Intellectual Property Law: This course examines the legal and theoretical foundations of domestic, international and transnational intellectual property law regimes. In covering the areas of patent, copyright, trademark, trade secret and espionage law, as well as their intermingled legislative histories, students gain in-depth knowledge of the prevailing domestic doctrines, as well as an understanding of how contemporary national policy is woven into international treaties and structures of transnational governance.

Sociology 236, Imprisonment and the Prisoner: What is the history of the prisoner? Who becomes a prisoner and what does the prisoner become once incarcerated? What is the relationship between crime and punishment? Focusing on the (global) prison industrial complex, this course critically interrogates the massive and increasing numbers of people imprisoned in the United States and around the world. The primary focus of this course is the prisoner and on the movement to abolish imprisonment as we know it. Topics covered in this course include: racial and gender inequality, the relationship between imprisonment and slavery, social death, the prisoner of war (POW), migrant incarceration, as well as prisoner resistance and rebellion. Students also come away from the course with a complex understanding of penal abolition and alternative models of justice

Sociology 240, Law and Society: Law is analyzed in its social context focusing on the relationship between law and social control, and law and social change. Topics discussed include psychiatry and the law, Blacks and the law, and women and the law. The criminal justice system is examined in a comparative framework, emphasizing the role of judges, juries, and particularly lawyers, in society.

I know many Vassar students who plan on attending law school after graduation. And our applicants have shown to have about a 15 percent statistical advantage over the national average for admission. After nearly three years here, I'm confident that Vassar is teaching the intense critical thinking and writing skills demanded of law students.

Reader question: What are Vassar's "strongest" academic departments?

"I was admitted to Vassar! But as I choose between the 'VC Brewers' and several other schools, I'm wondering which academic departments are strongest and weakest. Any insights?"

As perspective students make their college decisions throughout April, they consider each institution's strongest programs. One of the most common questions that I receive asks about Vassar's "best" departments.

The good news about Vassar: there are no weak departments. Each department (or multidisciplinary/interdisciplinary program) is comprised of numerous outstanding faculty members. Are some professors weaker than others? Of course. Have I regretted taking classes with a couple of tiresome or overly-difficult professors? You bet. And one student's inspirational teacher might be another student's worst nightmare. But it's important to remember that you would find these situations at any college, be it Swarthmore, Vassar or Brown. As my adviser in high school once told my friends, "Not every teacher is meant for every student."

What's great about Vassar, though, is that excellence in teaching is universally prized across departments; it's not simply "publish or perish" where the famous professors who write streams of books are automatically awarded tenure. Though we certainly have well-published and accomplished professors (my history professor Bob Brigham is one example), our faculty generally place their teaching above all else. Bob is a commanding lecturer and leads incisive class discussions -- in addition to being a prolific author on Vietnam and Iraq. Unlike at many larger universities, the two are not mutually exclusive. Teachers are evaluated by students at the end of each semester. Those evaluations contribute directly to tenure decisions.

Now of course, some departments at Vassar are especially well known, partly for their size and partly for the success of the graduates they produce. Anecdotally, the College is known for its programs in Art History, Astronomy, Biology, Economics, English, Drama, History, and Political Science. All of these are among the most popular disciplines at Vassar -- the more popular a major is, the larger the faculty will become, and the wider the breadth and depth of the curriculum. More broadly, we have one of the lowest student:faculty ratios in the country (9:1), which virtually guarantees one-on-one attention regardless of your choice of major.

The take-home message: I've never encountered a 'weak' department here. Whatever your chosen discipline, you'll be intellectually stimulated here at Vassar. I encourage prospective students curious for more detail to look through the 2009-10 Course Catalogue.

Reader Question: Student government at Vassar?

"I'm really interested in student government, but at my high school, it's sort of a joke. My class council meets about once each month to plan a party and never really accomplishes anything. What is student government like at Vassar?"


It's the perennial story; a hopeful, energetic high school student runs for their school's government with the hope of making a difference, only to be rebuffed by their principal or their teachers. The student is discouraged, condemned to a political career of party planning and having discussions that never lead to policy changes.

When you come to Vassar, all of this will change.

The Vassar Student Association (VSA)—the College's student government—is a large, effective and powerful conduit for policy making. As editor of our school's newspaper, I am well-acquainted with both the public and behind-the-scenes work of VSA representatives, and can attest first-hand that they hold an important place in policy making at Vassar. Our College works on a system of joint governance. This means that most changes to the curriculum, to student life, or to Vassar in general will be vetted through faculty, staff, students, administrators, and sometimes alumnae/i. These constituencies all have a stake—and a say—in the decisions of the College.

So how does our student government work? Unlike in high school, it's a fairly complicated system. It's not just a president, secretary and treasurer; there are dozens of elected positions with specific responsibilities and constituencies. The central governing body is the VSA Council, comprised of about 25 representatives. Each student at Vassar is represented on that Council by their Class President (for example, the Class of 2010) and their House President (for example, the President of Jewett House). Students are also represented by the six members of the VSA Executive Board, who lead the Council in discussions and policy-making. Each of those six students has a particular area of focus—student life, academics, activities, etc. And then there is the VSA President (basically the student body president) who coordinated the Executive Board and Council. The Executive Board meets regularly with the President and Deans of Vassar, dealing with a host of issues.

Beyond the Council, students are elected at large to sit on joint committees. Students sit right beside faculty and administrators, with equal vote, and make really important policies. One recent example from the Master Planning Committee is their Landscape Master Plan Proposal. A landscape master plan is an plan that unfolds over decades, moving roadways and streamlining and unifying a geographic area. Students worked with the landscaping firm, made suggestions, and voted to adopt the plan. Now how often did your high school student government get the redesign the entire school's campus?

As you can see, our VSA is a dynamic and widespread group. It will not be like your experience in high school, I assure you. At Vassar, students are routinely empowered to make important decisions on behalf of the institution.

To learn more, watch this video about last year's VSA President, Sam Charner '08:

Sustainability and Composting at Vassar

Vassar, Greenway work to improve sustainability.

When it comes to sustainability, composting is not a sexy issue. Futuristic wind turbines, shiny solar panels, and anything proceeded by the word "green" seem to take center stage in the national media. But many environmentalists agree that composting is another crucial activity to reduce our greenhouse gas emissions. Vassar is working hard to close its carbon footprint, and has an extremely strong composting program. Our student government is working to expand that program to the Retreat (one of the most popular dining facilities on campus). As you can see in the video, a company called Greenway, which currently manages Vassar's composting, did an "audit" there a few weeks ago to study how their system might work in that facility. Students and faculty are optimistic that our composting endeavors will successfully expand within a year.

To learn more about the College's efforts at sustainable food solutions, check out the Campus Dining site. And to learn more about Vassar's academic programs about the world around us, read about our popular Environmental Studies Program.

Reader Question: Double Majoring at Vassar?

Every week, I field many e-mails from prospective students who want to learn more about Vassar. Those questions are always so well thought-out and incisive, that I think other perspective students might benefit from reading them. So, in addition to answering those questions individually, I'll start to post some of them here as well.

Last week, I received an e-mail from a prospective student asking me to explain the process of double majoring at Vassar. "There are two subjects I'm really interested in," he wrote, "Biology and Economics. I know those two are worlds apart, but is it possible to study both (and major in both) at Vassar?"

The short answer: absolutely! Will it be more difficult? Sure. Will you have slightly more work and less free time? Yup. But is it possible? Definitely. In fact, many Vassar students (myself included) are double majors.

On my tour of Vassar as a high school student, I remember vividly something that the student tour guide said: "Vassar is a place where everyone has countless, equally intense interests. It's a place where your friends will be pre-med with a major in Art History, or looking to earn an MBA but also take a dozen literature courses." He continued, "And that's the great thing about Vassar; you never have to limit yourself."

After nearly three years at Vassar, I couldn't agree with him more. Double majoring is fairly common here. Some people, like me, double major in subjects that are semi-related. Since my first week of my first year at the College, I knew that I wanted to major in both History and Political Science. The two disciplines have obvious overlaps in terms of writing style and subject matter. Often, I will learn more about history in a poli sci course, or more about politics in a history course. They complement one another. Similarly, I know students who are majoring in other related subjects, like Biology/Chemistry, Economics/Mathematics, or Film/Media Studies.

Other, more adventurous students, however, will major in seemingly unrelated disciplines—Economics/Music, Physics/French, Biology/Drama. On average, I would say that each major requires about 12 total courses over your four years (in which you will take a minimum of 32 courses). How you choose to allocate those courses is left to each student's discretion.

I would also add that disciplines that appear on first glance to be unrelated might actually complement each other in exciting ways. My freshmen year, I met a someone double majoring in History and Media Studies. Why? He wanted to work for the History Channel. Consider someone this year majoring in Economics and Chinese. Why? To give himself the option of doing business in Asian markets.

So, getting back to your original question, it is absolutely possible to major in Biology and Economics. Whether you're looking to combine those two disciplines (say, by pursuing a career in the bio-pharmaceuticals industry) or whether you're interested in studying them separately, you will have the option of doing both at Vassar. That said, I would encourage anyone interested in double majoring to review the specific requirements for each department. You might find, for example, that both disciplines require a senior thesis, and doing two theses in a single year might prove very difficult. Those are issues to think over and discuss with your academic advisor once you get here in the fall.

Keep e-mailing me those questions! (brfarkas@vassar.edu)

Watch an exclusive tour of the new Davison House construction

Progress continues in the renovation of Davision House from The Miscellany News.


The Miscellany News is really making a concerted effort to produce multimedia each week to enhance our coverage of the Vassar campus.

Check out the video above, our second tour of Davison House this year. Davison, one of Vassar's nine primary dormitories, is undergoing a $19 million renovation. Walking through the construction site, I could really see a unique blend of old and new. In fact, the Project Manager showed us a fluted iron column (modeled after a Greek temple-style column) that had not been seen since Davison was first built in 1902. Interestingly, high-speed ethernet cables were being installed right behind this antique monument. How times have changed!

For an even longer look at what Vassar's newest dormitory will look like, check out the Miscellany's first video tour of Davison from November.