Because of the Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell Repeal Act of 2010, gay and lesbian service members may now serve openly in the US armed forces. The repeal officially went into effect at 12:01 am this morning.

The legislation will allow the plans for a Columbia NROTC program, which PrezBo laid down last semester, to finally proceed. Bwog extends its best wishes to all members of the US military, regardless of sexual orientation.

Patriotism via Wikimedia

return of the Reserve Officers Training Corps (ROTC) Program. It was the talk of the national media and dominated campus politics for a good semester. Bwog brings you up to speed with this primer on ROTC at Columbia.”>

A typical scene from the ROTC town hall meetings

One of the most controversial issues at Columbia last year was the return of the Reserve Officers Training Corps (ROTC) Program. It was the talk of the national media and dominated campus politics for a good semester. Bwog brings you up to speed with this primer on ROTC at Columbia.

Some historical context:

Columbia has played a prominent role in educating America’s servicemen since its foundations, and this tradition continued well into the 20th century. In 1969, responding prevalent antimilitary sentiment sparked by the Vietnam War, Columbia forced the NROTC program to leave campus. The university committee tasked with investigating the program argued that NROTC instructors were loyal first to the Navy and not Columbia. Columbia saw a conflict between “free inquiry and loyalty to external commitments.”

Since Columbia terminated its relationship with the Navy in ’69, there have been multiple unsuccessful efforts to revive the ROTC program. In 2005, the University Senate voted down a resolution that would have brought back ROTC. Critics argued the military’s policy of “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” violated Columbia’s non-discrimination policies. There was also a potential return in 2008: student councils organized a referendum on ROTC that asked whether the program should be brought back. However due to drama such as fraudulent votes, the issue was never even presented to the USenate. Since the ban, Columbia students could still participate in the ROTC, but had to enroll in programs at other schools, like Fordham.

What happened last year to reignite this issue on campus?

The repeal of “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell.” Literally the day after the law was changed the U.S. Senate voted to repeal the law, the Columbia University Senate created the Task Force on Military Engagement to investigate Columbia’s involvement with the military, and the school’s stance on ROTC. The task force devoted months to their investigations of Columbia’s military engagement, and organized town hall meetings and an online survey to gauge student opinion.

After the jump: town halls, the student survey, and what to expect next

Michele Moody-Adams may have only been dean for a scant two years, but she has undoubtedly made her mark in Columbia history. Bwog’s Peter Sterne takes us through the short time she spent as Dean of Columbia College.

When Michele Moody-Adams was first named as Columbia College’s new dean in February 2009, The New York Times wrote an article about “the first female and the first black dean of Columbia College.” They praised Columbia’s selection of Dean Moody-Adams first because of the demographic diversity it would bring to the administration, noting uncomfortably that “the top tier of the [Columbia] administration has remained largely male and monochromatic despite an increasingly diverse student body.” But the Times also recognized the strengths that she brought to Columbia, namely, her background in moral and political philosophy that would allow her to understand the importance and challenges of Columbia College’s Core Curriculum, and her experience working as both an academic and administrator at Cornell.

Dean Moody-Adams certainly seemed committed to the Core. In an interview with Columbia College Today, she spoke of her love for the Core and declared, “I will do everything I can to protect the Core, the best of the Core, and much of what remains and has been handed down through the decades is the best.” And when asked what should be used to judge her success or failure as a dean, she replied, “I think it would have to do with the Core — the health of the Core Curriculum and the extent to which…we’ve managed to preserve the essence of the Core.”

During her short time at Columbia, there have been some small efforts to enhance the Core Curriculum. Chair of Literature Humanities Christia Mercer created an interactive LitHum website that (at least in theory) helps students relate the themes of Lit Hum readings to each other and the modern world. In a similar vein, Professor Mercer, with Dean Moody-Adams’s support, started the Core Scholars program, which gives prizes to students who use Core readings as the basis for projects like songs, woodcuts, and intepretive dances. For Dean Moody-Adams, though, the Core includes more than just LitHum and CC. She believes strongly that the Core must include a basic understanding of science.

More MiMoo after the jump

He's waited a while for this.

Yesterday, Yale voted to restore ROTC, just days after Stanford voted to do the same. (YDN, Stanford Daily)

Famous playwright Tony Kushner, CC ’78, was slated to receive an honorary degree from CUNY, until one trustee objected and CUNY scrubbed his nomination. A lot of people cried foul, so now it looks like he’ll get a CUNY sheepskin after all! (NYT)

Forty years ago, a lawyer fresh out of law school filed a lawsuit against the NYPD. That lawsuit continues to be fought by the city. (City Room)

Looks like the battle between bloggers and traditional media is heating up! Yesterday, the Schools Chancellor had to break up a fight between a blogger and TV reporter at City Hall. (Daily Politics)

And don’t forget to check out the 24-hour Improv Show next to the Steps. The talented humorists of Fruit Paunch have now been performing for over 16 hours straight and will keep going until 5 pm!

Doggy from Wikimedia Commons

Update, 3:36 pm: Protesters claimed “The NYPD was going to arrest them,” so they’re now at the base of the steps. According to one tipster, they’re “making a lot of random noise.” One male is yelling noises—not words—into a microphone. A female has a cello.

Remember those anti-ROTC protesters? They’re back! About 20 people are currently gathered outside the Law School to protest what they call the “farcical display of democracy by the Senate Task Force on Military Engagement.” Upset that Columbia has decided to invite Naval ROTC back to campus, they’re expressing their frustration and rage by banging drums, making noise, and chanting catchy slogans like “They say ROT-C. We say democracy!” Read more…

Home Sweet Home (circa 1915)

V117 premieres tonight! Their trailer (as imagined by CUMB) boasts POWER, LUST and Godzilla footage. Check out our review of the preview, and a brief history of the Varsity Show tradition. We’ll see you there tonight!

Spec gets personal and pretty cute with their professors about the meaning of life, sharing their stories from their formative years. (The Eye)

Since you, fair readers, shitted all over our burger review, allow us to defer to Eater’s National Burger Week, a veritable tour de force of burger reportage from across the nation. (Eater)

The filming of Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close continues on Riverside Drive (from around 112th to 116th St.) Tom Hanks has wrapped up his portion of the shoot, but you might be able to get a glimpse of Max von Sydow, the famous Swedish actor and star of many Ingmar Bergman films.

Clearly following Columbia’s example, Yale will vote on May 5 whether to allow their students to ensure they will have jobs after graduation by joining ROTC. (Crimson, Bloomberg)

Old Skool via WikiCU

We continue to respect our heritage/amorous affair with our mother-magazine, The Blue & White by posting each issue of the magazine online. The latest issue, available this week around campus, is a cornucopia of delights: an interview with Dean Peter Awn; the quixotic quest for a Quidditch team; and a discussion of the institution of the Columbia presidency. This month, magazine Senior Editor and Bwog Editor Claire Sabel (with additional reporting by staff writer and Bwog Friday Editor Peter Sterne) reflects on Columbia’s year in the headlines.

Illustration by Louise McCune

Late December was, unfortunately, an auspicious time for student reporting. The NYPD’s undercover drug bust and the David Epstein incest case had shaken up Columbia, splattering the University’s name across the national media for stories that were to varying degrees degrading and embarrassing. Come spring, Columbia was in a prime position to bear the brunt of the press’s disapproval over another highly sensitive issue: questioning whether those academic institutions that had taken a stand against the military’s discrimination should be expected to formally engage with them after the repeal of “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell.”

One expects Columbia’s critics would be ready to mobilize these scandals from the fall; contesting the obligation to invite ROTC back to campus could easily have been presented as further evidence Columbia students and faculty were over-privileged and amoral. While the attention garnered by the debate over military engagement was certainly unflattering at times, it was remarkably untainted by residual malevolence from the slew of highly-publicized scandals. The Operation Ivy League coverage was largely a class narrative, and stereotyped Columbia as an organization of arrogant elites, but never referred to Columbia’s outspoken politics or legacy of activism either. A close examination of the way Columbia was portrayed in the media during these two dramatic spells leads to some telling conclusions about what our university has come to stand for beyond the bubble.

Read more…

Then again, it's hard for days to get worse than this

Reasons why these days are not the best days:

Parts of the world are at risk from nuclear fallout. Yet another fun/terrifying way to use Google Earth. (Fast Company/Arcade Fire)

Columbia dramatically scales back its new public school for those affected by its multi-billion-dollar expansion, angering residents. Does this surprise you? (DNAinfo)

NYU’s hawk Bobby was spotted reading amNew York. (City Room)

A transgender group, Together Columbia, is considering pursuing legal action against Columbia for its recent decision to reinstate ROTC. (Spec)

Today is “Gang Initiation Day.” Stay inside and eat your peeps. (Gothamist)

Scary picture via Wikimedia

Columbia and the Navy have “agreed to officially reinstate Naval Reserve Officers Training Corps (NROTC) Program enrollment opportunities at the University.” In a press release sent out today, PrezBo cites the repeal of DADT and the numerous student discussions as reasons for reengaging with ROTC. There are two practical details explicitly mentioned in the agreement. Provost Steele is to “establish a committee of faculty, students and administrators to oversee implementation of the ROTC program,” and it is already provided that “active duty Navy and Marine Corps officers will be able to meet with Columbia NROTC midshipmen on the Columbia campus in spaces furnished by Columbia.” The statement makes it clear that no changes will take place until DADT’s repeal comes into effect.

The press release is reproduced below. Read the full statement and PrezBo’s e-mail to the community (basically rehashing the same material) after the jump.

NEW YORK, April 22, 2011 — Columbia University President Lee C. Bollinger and Navy Secretary Ray Mabus today announced that Columbia and the U.S. Navy have agreed to officially reinstate Naval Reserve Officers Training Corps (NROTC) Program enrollment opportunities at the University.

“Repeal of the Don’t Ask Don’t Tell law provided a historic opportunity for our nation to live up to its ideals of equality and also for universities to reconsider their relationships with the military,” said Bollinger. “After many months of campus discussion, open forums, and a strongly favorable vote in the University Senate, together with consultation with the University’s Council of Deans, it is clear that the time has come for Columbia to reengage with the military program of ROTC. I believe that it is the right course of action for Columbia to formalize this recognition and thereby add to the diversity of choices for education and public service we make available to our students.”

Under the agreement, Columbia will resume full and formal recognition of Naval ROTC after the effective date of the repeal of the law that disqualified openly gay men and lesbians from military service, anticipated to come later this year. Read more…

Diminish'd

CCSC cooked it up. Brian Wagner ate it down.

• The Council talked about granting Barnard swipe access to Columbia dorms. In the past, insurance and other legal matters have barred student government from changing the current system. The Council resolved to investigate these barriers and to see if any additional ones existed. They also plan to discuss whether swipe access should be extended to GS or GS/JTS students.
• Dean of Community Development and Multicultural Affairs Terry Martinez presented plans to create electronic forms for students seeking to reserve space and to grant certain student groups their own credit cards in order to make easier for student groups to access funds and space. Read more…

It was usually rowdier than this.

Today, the University Senate held its usual monthly plenary meeting—but anything “usual” about it ended there. The meeting was held in Jerome 104, a larger space to accommodate the many guests, which included extra-stern Public Safety officers. In what was pretty much expected based on past ROTC business, the Senate passed an amended ROTC resolution, effectively opening the door to dialogues with the military about a potential ROTC branch. Conor Skelding gives a blow-by-blow of the parliamentary bickering.

Anticipation and tension in the crowd was palpable at the meeting’s outset. Public Safety ushered Senators and media in through one door, and relegated people not “on the list” to a long line at the main entrance. PrezBo began the meeting by tabling the fringe benefits update until the April 29th meeting—to the dissatisfaction of a few professors—and kept the rest of his opening remarks brief. Manhattanville, he said, is going great, especially the fundraising, and there are “major new gifts” are in the works. With that, he allowed another board member to carry on.

The meeting proper began with an overview of the Task Force’s process, then of “what the ROTC is and is not,” and finally a section-by-section analysis—a near defense, really—of the resolution to be presented. After this followed a point-by-point presentation on why Senate was the right body to deal with the ROTC and what the Task Force had done well. A faculty member and student each spoke for and against.

Read more…

The University Senate just voted to approve the final ROTC resolution, but only after amendments. You can compare the unamended with the final document, and read the full resolution as voted on by the Senate below. The resolution passed with 51 senators voting in favor, 17 opposed, and 1 abstention.

In a completely unrelated and much less controversial vote, the Senate also decided to change the name of the School of Continuing Education to the School of Professional and Cross-Disciplinary Studies.

Bwog will have a full report on today’s USenate meeting later this afternoon.

Update, 7:14 pm: We’ve updated with the official University statement:

We appreciate the diligent work by the University Senate in fostering a robust debate on the issue of military engagement and ROTC. As in any diverse, open community there will always be a range of strongly held opinions on such important issues. But as President Bollinger stated after last December’s Congressional vote, the repeal of Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell offers an historic opportunity for universities to reconsider their own policies as well. As planned, we look forward to sharing the Senate resolution with the Council of Deans and seeking an official conclusion on this matter by the end of the semester.

Read more…

Protesters banging drums and chanting catchy slogans such as “They say ROTC. We say democracy!” have gathered on 116th and Amsterdam across from the Law School, where the University Senate is voting on discussing the final ROTC resolution.

The Senate has released its final resolution regarding military engagement, building off of last week’s draft resolution. It’s going to be presented to the University Senate at tomorrow’s plenary meeting–Bwog is waiting for word on whether or not it will be voted on.

The preambulatory clauses are phrased and ordered slightly differently, but the operative clauses are exactly the same. Those are below.

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED

That Columbia University welcomes the opportunity to explore further mutually beneficial relationships with the Armed Forces of the United States, including participation in the programs of the Reserve Officers Training Corps; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED

That Columbia University reaffirms University Statutes III § 35 (Powers of the Faculties Excepting Arts and Sciences and Health Sciences), XXIX § 293 (Powers of the Faculty of Arts and Sciences), and XXXIII § 333 (Powers of the Faculty of Health Sciences), that questions of academic credit, faculty appointments, academic governance, and space allocation shall remain the sole and exclusive domain of the Provost, of the faculties of the affected schools, and of their several deans, as shall not contravene the Charter of Columbia College (enacted 1787, amended 1810), the University Statutes, or any resolution of the Trustees or of the University Senate; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED

That any further relationships with the Armed Forces of the United States, beginning with relationships that may arise as a result of this resolution, shall be subject to periodic review by the appropriate committees of the University Senate …

You can read the full text here.

The University Senate will probably vote on their draft resolution for ROTC’s return on April 1st, although it’s possible they’ll delay until the following plenary meeting on April 29th. Barring a veto of their decision by the Trustees, the USenate’s vote will be the final decision. Reviewing our coverage of the ROTC proceedings, here is both a recap of the process so far, and a summary of the Task Force On Military Engagement‘s 228 page-long monster of a report and draft resolution.

• The whole thing got started with the Senate’s repeal of Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell, the Cinton-era policy prohibiting openly gay people from serving in the armed forces. The very next day, the University Senate created the Task Force On Military Engagement. In the same press release they laid out the plans for three town hall style meetings, solicitation of opinion by email, and a student survey, which together would inform the Task Force’s opinion. On January 28th, 2011, the Senate released a more specific version of that plan.
• The Task Force held its town hall meetings, not without controversy.
• Between the second and third meetings, the Senate released its non-binding survey to BC, CC, GS, SIPA and SEAS. Bwog helped clarify some points of the issue.
• Survey results came in. Of 11,629 eligible students, 2,252 students voted. 60% voted in favor of ROTC’s return to Columbia.
• The University Senate met on March 4th, and Ron Mazor and Roosevelt Montás presented the Task Force’s report.
• Some faculty held their own panel discussion which was classier than ours.
• The University Senate released a draft resolution which would tentatively allow ROTC to return.
• The next meeting of the University Senate—at which they will likely vote—will be April 1st. Failing a vote then, they will decide April 29th. Though a Trustee veto is technically possible, one has never been exercised since the Senate was founded. it is very unlikely given recent history. The last time the Senate was overruled was in 2009 when they voted to change the date of commencement. There have only been a few other cases in the last decade.

Keep reading after the jump for a summary of the Task Force’s report and the draft resolution. Read more…