Campus News – The Oberlin Review

Halted Survey Sparks OSCA Concerns

February 14, 2020

A proposed survey designed to assess the co-curricular value of the Oberlin Student Cooperative Association and other campus residential experiences was not sent out to students and alumni last July, as originally planned in collaboration with several campus offices. Instead, the College and OSCA will draw on existing institutional data to define their contractual relationship later this spring. Posters declaring “Save Our Beans!” put up this semester have ignited recent campus dialogue about th...

Fourth Meal Changes Greeted By Student Pushback

February 14, 2020

As of this semester, Fourth Meal — previously served buffet-style in the Rathskeller — is now being served in DeCafé in to-go boxes. Students can now purchase Fourth Meal the same way as all DeCafé meals: by choosing one entree, two sides, and a drink packaged in plastic containers. Many students have witnessed significant changes to the location and structure of Fourth Meal during their time at Oberlin and some have expressed disappointment at these changes. “It’s horrible,” said Joshua Rho...

The 2010s: Moments That Defined a Decade

February 7, 2020

Ambar’s Appointment Following an extensive nationwide search, Carmen Twillie Ambar was introduced in May 2017 as the 15th president of Oberlin College and Conservatory. She is the institution’s first Black and second woman leader in its more than 180-year history. Ambar was selected to replace outgoing President Marvin Krislov, now president of Pace University, at a particularly challenging moment in Oberlin’s institutional history. Faced with a growing structural budget deficit as soon a...

College Tackles Coronavirus Concerns

Carson Li

February 7, 2020

As concern about a new coronavirus strain, 2019-nCoV, mounts globally, College administrators and other community members have adopted proactive communication and prevention strategies. The Office of Communications has sent out four emails to students and faculty providing updates on the new coronavirus strain, 2019-nCoV, over the past few weeks. According to Interim Chief of Staff David Hertz, none of the communications have been compelled by institutional policy; rather, they came from a desire to keep the community informed. “The point of providing the information is so that [people on campus] don’t invent scenarios and that we treat this situation with the gravity it deserves,” Hertz said, adding that he and ot...

College Faculty Approves New Business Concentration

Katie Lucey, News Editor

February 7, 2020

The College Faculty voted unanimously Wednesday to approve a new integrative concentration in Business. The concentration, first recommended in last spring’s One Oberlin report, a result of the yearlong Academic and Administrative Program Review, will enroll its first students during the Fall 2021 semester. It will join a new journalism concentration and several new arts-focused programs that will also be introduced in the fall. The AAPR process identified demonstrated student interest in learning core business skills — such as finance and accounting — in an academic setting, while also gaining meaningful work experience that could better prepare students for a career post-graduation. “I have seen more and more students ...

OSCA Appoints Interim President

Ella Moxley, Senior Staff Writer

February 7, 2020

In their final meeting of last semester, Oberlin Student Cooperative Association board members appointed Conservatory fourth-year Teagan Webb as interim president to fill the position left by College third-year Gio Donovan. Typically, the OSCA president serves a year-long term and is elected by the entire membership. “Due to unfortunate and unpredictable circumstances I’ve had to step down as President of OSCA for the 2019-2020 academic year,” Donovan wrote in a message to the Review. “I’m currently on medical leave and plan to return to Oberlin in the fall of 2020.” The OSCA board knew Donovan would be stepping down before the last board meeting of the fall semester. Due to OSCA policy, it was necessary t...

First Cuban Ambassador to the U.S. in 50 Years Presents to Students

Katherine MacPhail and Daniel Fleischer

February 7, 2020

Cuba’s first ambassador to the United States since the two countries closed their embassies in 1961 addressed students Thursday in a talk entitled “The Future of U.S.-Cuban Government Relations.” Ambassador José Ramón Cabañas visited Oberlin after traveling to Cleveland to meet with the LNE Group, a transatlantic advocacy firm. Cabañas explained that his goal in talking to students is to inspire more interest in international relations between the U.S. and Cuba. “Our only aim is that when we finish this week, next week, next month, is that you look for books, you look for more information about Cuba, and you simply try to understand the bilateral relationship from the United States from a historical perspect...

Ferd Protzman, OC ’75, Retiring Chief of Staff, Reflects on Oberlin Career

December 13, 2019

After serving for three years as chief of staff in the Office of the President, Ferd Protzman, OC ’75, will retire at the end of the calendar year. Protzman will be replaced on an interim basis by David Hertz, managing director at Cleveland-based crisis communications firm Dix & Eaton, while a national search is launched to find a full-time replacement. Protzman returned to Oberlin in 2006 while working as an author and journalist for publications including The Washington Post and The New...

Posters Call Upon Students to Boycott Course Evaluations

Rachel Choi

December 13, 2019

Conversations around the ethics of student-submitted course evaluations have surfaced after anonymous posters were put up around campus urging students to boycott filling out their evaluations. The posters argue that inherent implicit biases may cause unfairness and inequity in the evaluations, particularly toward professors who identify as women or LGBTQ+, as well as professors of color. “Due to our implicit and internalized biases, we hold minority professors to disproportionately higher standards than we hold their majority counterparts,” the poster read. “This bigotry fosters an atmosphere in which marginalized people must work substantially harder to earn the same amount of recognition, opportunities, and...

William Quillen Named Dean of Conservatory

Anisa Curry Vietze, News Editor

December 13, 2019

William Quillen has been hired as dean of the Conservatory after serving in the position on an interim basis since June 2018. In May, Oberlin launched a confidential national search for the position. Quillen was vice-chair of the Academic and Administrative Program Review’s Steering Committee, alongside Acting Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences David Kamitsuka. The Committee led the institution-wide evaluation and made recommendations to address the College’s financial issues. “I am excited that Bill will continue to provide thoughtful guidance and leadership as dean of the Conservatory,” President Carmen Twillie Ambar said according to a Dec. 10 College press release. “He has demonstrated a vision fo...

Security Report

December 13, 2019

Friday, Dec. 6, 2019 1:14 a.m. Campus Safety officers and the Oberlin Fire Department responded to a fire alarm in the Talcott Hall basement. No fire or smoke was observed in the area. An electrician responded to replace the detector. 7:55 p.m. Mercy Allen Hospital staff requested transport for a student to their East Hall dorm. Officers responded and the transport was completed. 10:44 p.m. Officers and the Oberlin Fire Department responded to a fire alarm in the Talcott Hall basement’s mechanical room. Steam from the HVAC system was found to be the cause. A work order was filed. Saturday, Dec. 7, 2019 3:52 p.m. Officers and the Oberlin Fire Department responded to a fire alarm at a Union Street Housing Unit. S...

Student Voting Participation Higher Than Previously Reported, Says Professor

December 6, 2019

Since 2012, reports generated by the National Study of Learning, Voting, and Engagement have calculated voter participation at Oberlin College as below national averages for college students across the country. Now, independent research undertaken by Associate Professor and Chair of Geology F. Zeb Page reveals that the NSLVE numbers may be inaccurate. Page was initially motivated to examine the NSLVE numbers because of a hunch. “When we look at [low turnout numbers], we imagine our student bod...