Thirty-seven years ago, the first issue of The Daily Free Press was printed the day after Boston University’s deans canceled final exams and Commencement following the Kent State riots. The lede for the story, written by the Free Press’s first editor-in-chief, Charlie Radin, is:
“Boston University is closed.”
There are fewer controversies to protest today, and even though this school was once called the “Berkeley of the East,” our campus lacks the same national presence it did in 1970, when 1500 BU students voted for a strike.
This paper has always tried its best to represent and encourage the student voice. Our complete financial and editorial independence lets us focus a critical eye on this university’s actions.
Over the years, the Free Press has changed in many ways. Below the Fold has two main purposes: for us to share deeper insight to stories that run in the paper, and for you to question our judgment. You can challenge our decisions, and we will try to include you in the thought behind those decisions made in the newsroom.
Usually, a new year at BU carries most of the familiar stories — matriculation, Splash, housing issues — but President Robert Brown had something else in mind over the summer. His decision to cut the University Professors Program from the list of BU colleges is the first academic stamp he has placed on this campus.
In May 1996, John Silber resigned from the BU presidency, ending a 25-year reign in which he transformed a commuter school into what BU is today. The former president, no doubt a brilliant academic, made some unpopular decisions and was no stranger to controversy, and has been described abrasive by friends and critics alike. His image is almost opposite of Brown, who has been well-received by the school’s teachers and students, and had not made any controversial moves until he cut UNI in the summer.
Brown has proposed a “university-wide honors program” to replace UNI, though no detailed plan has been developed as to how this will work, who will be eligible and what will happen to existing honors programs in other colleges.
We are still waiting to see what type of leader Brown is — in his two years on this side of the Charles River, he has made efforts through his Strategic Plan to collect information about BU and the student body. If his decision to cut UNI is any indication of his master plan, expect to see more changes before the semester is over.
Also during the summer, the president announced BU will use the Send Word Now communication tool in case of an emergency on campus. After the Virginia Tech massacre in April, Brown touted the technology as one of the most efficient emergency-response tools in an interview at the end of the semester.
But according to school figures, just less than half of the BU population has signed up for the program — meaning thousands of students have not entered a cellphone number on the Student Link, and they will be banned from signing up for classes until they do so. The same penalty goes for students who have not proven immunity to measles to Student Health Services.
While the efforts of the administration to develop this system should be applauded, it has been remiss when it’s come to the issue of communicating the importance of the system. In interviews with the Free Press, administrators said they hoped this paper’s coverage would alert students to sign up. In Brown’s email to the BU community about the Send Word Now system, he made no mention that students would be banned from registering for classes spring semester if they failed to sign up for the program. Students first learned about the policy through Dean of Students Kenneth Elmore’s interview with the Free Press.
While we try to bring the most important campus news to students, we’re certainly not here to do the university’s bidding. It is in the interest of both the administration and students to advertise the hell out of this system. The possibility of missing out on class registration should be troubling enough for students. And just imagine the black eye BU would receive if a campus emergency actually occurred and no one found out until it was too late.
Such was the case at the University of Colorado at Boulder, when a former university employee stabbed a student in the cafeteria. In that day alone, registry in the campus’s emergency-notification system rose from 500 to 5,000. The boost indicates students knew about the system, but just never took it seriously until something happened.
The Boulder students were reactive, but we hope the remaining BU students will be proactive and sign up before anything happens.
As far as the Student Union goes: Although it hasn’t held its first General Assembly meeting yet, it’s not too early to keep an eye on what it’s doing. Last year’s Union lacked student involvement and efficiency. It spent almost the entire year addressing internal issues and hardly lived up to its title as the leading student advocacy group. Students expressed their frustration with the status quo when they elected the so-called “outside” candidate, Adil Yunis, to the presidency in April — by a 30-vote margin. From what we’ve seen, Yunis has been busy this summer establishing relationships with key administrators and talking with students.
Never underestimate the power of communication at this university. Despite the large student body, you can get your voice heard through the Union and the Free Press. Contact the Union with your concerns and keep at it. Persistence will bring change. Write a letter to the Free Press with your concerns. When you write a letter to us, it will be read by the editor-in-chief, managing editor, executive editor and the editorial page editor, as well as the tens of thousands of students and staff who pick up the paper or read it online each day.
Finally, a note to new students: Boston has its share of unique neighborhoods, all with attractive qualities, be it an artsy area of Jamaica Plain or an indie clothing store on Brighton Avenue. Our ongoing series about b-side Boston has tried to highlight the unique and quirky elements that make this city so interesting. Be sure to get out of the BU bubble.
The creation of this Editors’ Blog is an idea the editors have been kicking around over summer vacation. In the past year, we have made an effort to be more transparent and accessible to our readers, divulging information about the Free Press’s financial situation and how an independent press operates. We hope this blog can help you, our readers, better understand BU and the thought that goes into the Free Press. Send us questions and concerns to [email protected].
Thanks, and keep reading.
Matt Negrin, Editor-in-Chief
Jason Millman, Managing Editor
