Trinity Tripod Online -- 11.22.99


If you made it out into the cold Thursday night to spend your last meals at the Cave, you may have noticed a group of people with sleeping bags and wondered what they were doing. If you stopped to ask, you found out that this group of students, faculty, and staff had come to spend the night on the Cave Patio in order to raise awareness about the problem of homelessness. The sleepout, held annually by ConnPIRG as a part of Hunger and Homelessness Awareness Week, began at 9 P.M. and continued into the morning.To kick off the night, speaker David Martineau, Director of the Immaculate Conception Shelter, spoke about his experiences with the homeless. As always, he was inspiring, giving vivid descriptions of the homeless with whom he has worked.He also talked about the programs that they use to get people back into housing. Martineau also criticized his generation for selling out on their views during the 1960s, creating the problem of homelessness, and leaving it for our generation to fix. Full story...

Trinity Seeks New Dean of Faculty

During the 1999-2000 academic year, the College has been engaged in an elaborate process searching for a new Dean of Faculty. A committee consisting of five faculty members has been reviewing applications, interviewing candidates, and narrowing the field of prospective deans since last June.

The committee that is responsible for evaluating candidates is co-chaired by Engineering Professor David Ahlgren, and English Professor Jan Cohn. Other members of the committee include Professor of Religion Leslie Desmangles, Assistant Athletic Director Robin Sheppard, and Economics Professor William Butos. At the present time, the committee has narrowed the candidate pool of over seventy applicants to six finalists. The remaining candidates are currently being interviewed by the committee, which will eventually make a final recommendation to President Evan Dobelle. President Dobelle will then make the final decision concerning which candidate to hire for the Dean of Faculty position.

The hiring process began last April, when the five members of the committee were appointed by a faculty conference. The first meeting was held in late April, at which the committee decided on a course of action for the process of hiring a new Dean.

Ahlgren, who is co-chairman of the committee, described the early days of the process as a busy, but productive time for the committee. "We solicited opinions from the faculty, trying to gage what in their eyes would make a good Dean. On June 14, we met with various constituencies on campus, gathering thoughts and opinions." The committee also met with department heads, the administration, the Deans' staff, various program directors, chairs of standing committees on the faculty, the Athletic Department, and the College Vice-Presidents. Full story...

College Hosts First Black Student Conference

On Friday Nov. 19, and Sat. Nov. 20 Trinity College was the host of the first Black Student Union Conference, entitled African Americans in the Next Millennium. It brought together students willing to discuss and learn more about issues specific to the African American population in the United States on the verge of the 21st century.

The conference opened on Friday with a ceremony in the Washington Room. The speech given by president of Imani Charles Botts' was followed by a performance by Trinity College's gospel choir and an introduction of the student groups participating in the conference. The leaders of TCBWO (Trinity College Black Women's Organization), MOCA (Men of Color Alliance) and Imani (Black student union) talked about the goals of their respective organizations and about the importance of such an event on campus. According to Mathew Anderson and Andrew Peal, co-chairs of MOCA the main significance of the conference was its attempt to "Help students of color come together as a group and work on common problems."

Imani secretary, Lakilah Harrigan, also expressed the opinion that organization like Imani and the events that they conduct "seek to get black students involved in every aspect of life on campus" and will "continue to encourage African American student to increase the awareness of others."

President Evan Dobelle introduced the conference keynote speaker, Dr. Derrick A. Bell. Currently a Professor at NYU law school and the first tenured black professor at Harvard Law school, he is also the author of books like And We Are Not Saved and Faces at the Bottom of the Well. In his speech he voiced and opinion about subjects such as racism and the various questions that it raises. "Society will never overcome racial discriminations until a white leader steps up and frees white people from racial prejudice against black people," said Bell. Full story...