To think that I might have unknowingly crossed paths with Didion during those sixteen years, her presence registering with me as nothing more than a woman sporting thick-brimmed sunglasses, a woman scarcely surpassing my barely five-feet-tall mother in stature, is, to me now, astounding.

Yet despite our time spent in the same city, any true Didion devotee knows her soul resides in California. So when it came time to visit my cousins in Los Angeles over winter break, I  realized this was my chance to seek out California as Didion knew it. If I couldn’t directly observe the person I strive to be, the least I could do was orient myself through her map.

In preparation for my trip, I looked back at some of Didion’s pieces on Los Angeles. I was struck, in particular, by a section of “The White Album” where she describes the West Hollywood house that she rented for five years in the late ’60s. According to Didion, while the structure of the house itself was spacious and high-ceilinged, its facade was near disintegration. The home’s exterior had “paint peeled inside and out … pipes broke and window sashes crumbled.” But what followed such a picture of the home’s rawness was a spiritual description of how it transcended its physicality. She wrote, “during the five years I lived there, even the rather sinistral inertia of the neighborhood tended to suggest that I live in the house indefinitely.” I decided I needed to make a pilgrimage to view the home on Franklin Avenue myself: what better place could there be to visit for a person who quasi-jokingly refers to Didion as ‘Saint Joan’ on the daily? 

Upon arriving in Los Angeles, I realized that my cousin’s house was within walking distance from the home. A quick Google search told me that it was now run by the Shumei America Hollywood Center, a spiritual organization that describes itself as “dedicated to advancing health, happiness, and harmony for all humankind through applying the insights of its founder, Mokichi Okada.” I found the notion of a community guided by the principles of “natural agriculture,” nestled in the heart of West Hollywood and in the home that Didion claimed to have a near-supernatural bond with, irresistibly intriguing. 

I immediately concluded that the group must be a cult, and I crossed my fingers, hoping it was indeed one. This was the kind of investigative journalism that Didion herself would have pursued: she would have written about a nature cult in the middle of Hollywood Hills. 

On my first day in Los Angeles, I sprang out of bed at 6:30 a.m. I shuffled into the bathroom, showered and threw together an ensemble that vaguely adhered to the Joan Didion playbook for the quintessential reporter: a cotton shirt paired with a cardigan hung over my shoulders and my favorite pair of jeans — although Didion seemed to exclusively wear skirts when reporting, I went off the dress code for the sake of my own comfort. 

I grabbed Luna, my cousin’s pomeranian who spends more time in a bag than on foot. I’d promised to dog-sit and figured if things went south with the nature cult, they might take pity on the girl with the dog.

As I walked towards the home, I drifted into a meditation on how Didion might perceive this assignment: would she too feel herself, point blank freaking out? Or, in characteristic composure, would she regard this quest as child’s play? 

All of these thoughts ceased once I found myself a block away. Palm trees, towering at least fifty feet in height, adorned both sides of the thoroughfare, their fronds seemingly intermingling in the wind. On one side of the street, the side where 7406 was located, homes emerged like siblings, pristine in their wedding-cake white, epitomizing the traditional allure of Hollywood. The homes on the other side of the street were of a greater variety: hues of tan and red, interspersed with the occasional apartment complex. As I approached 7406, I couldn’t shake the echo of Didion’s reflection on her arrival in New York at the age of twenty. “Was anyone ever so young?” she had written — a musing that resonated with me as a firm statement rather than a question. Here I was, with half-dried hair and a dog in hand, standing in front of the home of my late idol. Was anyone ever so young. 

A seafoam-colored gate enclosed the home, ornamented with three separate rustic signs bearing the number 7406 pyrographed atop of them. Green leaves and plants sprouted from behind the gate, spilling over its boundaries. Weakling lemon trees bearing neon-hued fruit peeked out tantalizingly. On the opposite side of the home, smaller and sturdier cherry trees flourished, their delicate blossoms tinted a vibrant shade of light pink.

The house itself strayed far from Didion’s 1960 description. Back when Didion lived in the home, her acquaintances described this part of Hollywood as a “senseless killing neighborhood.” In the years since, it has turned into one of the most affluent neighborhoods in the world. The house stood starkly white, almost aggressively so, with a brilliance that made one wonder how a color that vivid could possibly be maintained. 

I stared out into the garden, which had once been roamed by the likes of Janis Joplin and Patti Smith at Didion’s fabled dinner parties. I could imagine Didion herself roaming this garden frequently, struck many times on this soil by strokes of genius — thoughts so irresistible they make you drop everything to go get a pen and paper. Her introspections and reflections that I held in such high regard could have come to her here. Possibly on the very stoop that I sat on. 

I sat there for about an hour, hoping to absorb some of Didion’s spirit. Instead, my notebook read: “I am not allergic to lemon but the smell is so strong I might be soon enough” and “I can only liken this experience to a religious one.” On the porch of a master writer, the best I could come up with were notes about my clogged sinuses and parasocial relationship with a dead woman. Was anyone ever so young. 

I eventually quit attempting to write and decided to wander to the back of the house. I entered the vastest, most lush garden I had ever seen. Large stocks of green plants sprung up from the ground with cartoonesque flowers spurting out of them.

Several signs around the garden with the embossed words “Welcome To The Shumei Hollywood Garden” caught my attention. This was the first indication I had of the home actually being run by this nature spiritual organization. Each sign was split up into three sections: “Our Philosophy,” “History of the Garden” and “Frequently Asked Questions.” 

Underneath the “Our Philosophy” section was written:

“The practice of Natural Agriculture is based on a highly developed philosophy that integrates art, beauty and nature into all aspects of life. It is intimately tied to the physical and spiritual laws that govern the universe, as perceived by its founder. The unique contribution of Natural Agriculture is its fundamental respect for all elements involved in the natural growing process — light, soil, water and air. Natural Agriculture fosters a deep awareness of the contribution of each element and the benefits derived from working in harmony with them.” 

I had never read a paragraph that said so little in so many words. What I found so jarring wasn’t necessarily the belief system itself, but the way it was communicated. This had once been the home of a woman defined by her masterful use of language, a home that this woman said she would live in “indefinitely.” And here I was, standing in that same space, reading language that felt vague and meandering. It wasn’t about judgement so much as dissonance: a kind of tonal whiplash between precision and opacity. 

The “History of the Garden” section below only deepened my unease: 

“The Hollywood Natural Agriculture Garden holds special significance as the first place in the western world to practice this way of farming. Farm Manager Junzo Uyeno first began working on transforming the half-acre plot of land in the backyard of the Shumei Hollywood Center in 1993. The area held an abandoned tennis court and a dilapidated flagstone barbeque area, both almost lost in a wild tangle of underbush, overgrown trees, and grass. It took Mr. Uyeno close to five years to clear the land and transform the hard rock ground into soil suitable for practicing Natural Agriculture.”

What was described seemed to mirror Didion’s description of her home in The White Album. Looking out into the most manicured garden I had ever seen, I found myself desperately wishing to see the overgrown weeds, trashed tennis court, and destroyed barbeque area that both Didion and the sign described. This home had a life, a history that had been stripped away in this man’s pursuit of “Natural Agriculture.” Why couldn’t he have picked another home? Why did he have to pick the home where Didion derived her inspiration, where she took solace and sanctuary? What gave this organization the right to deem her home ‘unkempt’ and completely renovate it? 

If Joan believed she would live in this home indefinitely, and now that home has been destroyed, where does that leave Joan?

Two months later, I sat in calculus class, my attention focused on what was my newest senior spring fixation of the week: Zillow house stalking. I decided to look up my old home, apartment 2b, where I lived for the first decade of my life. 

When I lived in it, the apartment was full of character: each room was painted in different neon colors, with craft projects, books and toys lining the walls. The home was as vibrant physically as it had felt to me in its essence. My memories of that time were of constant play: every action I took felt like an adventure, and every experience I had felt like a fresh, new lesson. 

The home that Zillow displayed in front of me was entirely white, light gray and dark gray. Both my brother’s and my own room appeared to have been converted into home offices. 

I felt that same gutting feeling in my stomach that I had felt two months prior, reading the signs at Joan Didion’s home. This time, however, it was a first-hand feeling. 

Why would they rip it apart?

An irrational thought, perhaps. People can do whatever they want to the home they inhabit. It’s one’s right to orient oneself on one’s own terms. But why did it have to be my room, my house, that this family stripped to its core? The room that I had inhabited during the most formative years of my life, where I developed a consciousness and learned how to interact with the world? 

Sure, the home we had inhabited looked like something out of a “Looney Toons” episode, with half-ripped scratch-and-sniff stickers melting into the walls and faded small smiley faces drawn with Crayola markers on the bottoms of chairs. To the raw eye, the home might have looked like what 7406 Franklin Avenue did to Junzo Uyeno in 1993: desolate, disheveled, overworn. But that was ignoring why it looked that way: it mirrored the thoughts I had in it, the laughs that resounded from its walls, the bright-eyed children who wanted a hand at decorating the house to make it into their home. 

If I became who I was in apartment 2b, and now that home has been destroyed, where does that leave me? 

Even though I have not set foot in it in practically a decade, I still find great solace in thinking about apartment 2b. I seemed to feel the same nostalgia for 7406 Franklin Avenue, a home I never inhabited and spent two mere, uninvited hours at. Maybe it was because Didion developed such a concrete image of the home in my mind. Maybe it was because she felt as though a piece of her would live in that home forever, just as I felt about apartment 2b. But maybe those pieces of us no longer exist. Was anyone ever so young. 

The post Slouching Towards 7406 Franklin Avenue appeared first on Yale Daily News.

What began as a conversation about their favorite dishes — crispy rice with raw fish, whipped ricotta on sourdough, decadently garnished sandwiches — quickly evolved into a bold idea: creating their own catering company. Now they hope to make food at Yale more fun and affordable. Their brainchild, which they named SAQIN, which means “knife” in Hebrew, is a catering company based in New Haven and New York. 

“We’re not just a catering company,” Namdar-Cohen said. “We see SAQIN as the college-level baby sister of a hospitality group. It’s about food, yes, but also the experience and the connection it creates.”

Namdar-Cohen and Donath, who describe themselves as “eclectic cooks,” dabble in a diverse range of cuisines. The pair source ingredients from New Haven local staples like Whole Foods and The Loop by Hachiroku, as well as from their personal collection of unique finds — chili oil from a New York market, pomegranate molasses brought back from Italy. Donath even has a designated “sauce corner” in her Lanman-Wright Hall dorm room.

At Yale, SAQIN collaborates with clubs, organizations and students, catering events ranging from a recent 17o1 Records concert to intimate birthday dinners. The group has eight more events lined up before the end of the semester.

When clients approach SAQIN, the pair works with them to customize a menu that fits their specific desires.

“We’re visual learners,” Donath said, describing their menu-creating process. “We scroll through cookbooks, photos and memories of dishes and flavors that excited us in the past. It’s our favorite part of the process — it doesn’t even feel like work.” 

Namdar-Cohen and Donath, who attended the same high school in New York City but did not know each other then, describe themselves as “two halves of the same brain” despite their very different thinking and creative processes. Donath calls Namdar-Cohen a “visionary,” referencing her extensive list of ideas in their “dream big” Google document, while Namdar-Cohen describes Donath as a “very grounded force.”

“They seem fully themselves when they’re cooking,” said Mira Dubler-Furman ’27, a long-time friend of the pair. “Personally, I get very overwhelmed in grocery stores, but they run around with huge shopping carts excitedly looking for tahini paste. It’s their passion.”

At Yale, Namdar-Cohen and Donath have had to get creative with their cooking spaces, relying on student kitchens in residential colleges and friends’ off-campus apartments. Next year, Namdar-Cohen plans to live off-campus in a space with a dedicated kitchen. The pair also noted that they are open to renting industrial kitchen spaces in New Haven for larger catering events.

“Since I met Maia, I’ve been super impressed with the way her brain works: she thinks in food,” said Metztli Lopez ’28. “We will try one thing that is really delicious and then immediately I can see the wheels in her head turning, thinking ‘Oh, this would be really good with this.’ The dishes come to her, almost in a vision.”

Some of Dubler-Furman’s favorite SAQIN dishes so far include salmon crudo, baba ganoush and a pepper dip served with pita. Lopez enjoys anything they make that includes raw fish — a SAQIN specialty — such as a salmon and peach carpaccio dish and a butternut squash rigatoni.

At the center of SAQIN, said Tamdar-Cohen and Donath, lie the people — at Yale and beyond — that their food aims to celebrate.

“We saw the biggest gap here [at Yale] — nobody was giving people fun and delicious food at an affordable price,” said Donath, “The key that we’re investing in is the Yale culture and people.”

In the near future, SAQIN is preparing for their New York launch event during November recess. But, Donath and Namdar-Cohen see infinite possibilities for how SAQIN could grow someday — dreams ranging from opening up sandwich shops and sashimi bars.

SAQIN’s Instagram account can be found at @saqincatering.

The post With SAQIN, two Yalies cut into the catering scene appeared first on Yale Daily News.

The buffet will take place from 12 p.m. to 2 p.m. and is open to any Yale College student who is staying on campus during the holiday. While the meal is free of charge, seating is limited to 500 students according to Yale Connect. Attendees can register in advance through Yale Connect. 

“[The meal’s goal is] to bring together Yale College undergraduate students and college residents on campus over Thanksgiving Day,” wrote Marisa Figueira, director of operations for the Yale College Dean’s Office. “We know that a portion of our students remain on campus, and we want to be able to share a meal in the spirit of gratitude as a residential campus community.”

This is the fourth year that the Heads of College have hosted the Thanksgiving meal, which is catered by the Omni Hotel. The tradition began in 2021 when students returned to campus after COVID-19 restrictions. 

While the event has remained relatively consistent, the menu has been tweaked over the years to better accommodate dietary restrictions. Past menus have featured Thanksgiving staples, such as roasted turkey and gravy, stuffing, smashed potatoes and apple pie. According to Figueira, this large-scale event is planned in advance, and the menu is usually finalized over the summer. 

Mary Kim ’27, originally from Anchorage, Alaska, went home during her first-year November recess. This year she will remain on-campus and plans to attend the feast with her suitemate. 

“I have heard the Omni Hotel is nice, and I hope they have yummy, actually tasty, food,” Kim said, “I hope it is not just something thrown together or something ‘dining hall-esque.’”

While the dinner is marketed as a “Thanksgiving dinner,” it occurs during lunchtime. 

Sebastian Reyes ’27, who attended the meal last year and plans to go again this year, said he  appreciated the midday timing as it allows him to eat, go “into a food coma for a bit” and still have time afterward to be productive. 

“I think [the timing is] understandable because no one wants to spend Thanksgiving dinner working. I will just enjoy the Thanksgiving lunch,” said Kim, describing the convenience of an early meal.

Matthew Stocks ’28, originally from Liverpool, England, has never celebrated Thanksgiving before. Stocks, who is planning to attend the feast, is looking forward to what he hopes is “a pretty nice meal.” Stocks said that he is particularly excited to try biscuits and gravy. 

Reyes also shared a highlight from last year’s meal: the desserts, particularly little layered cakes that were served in small cups. 

Kim hopes that the Omni’s food is more “homey” than the typical dining hall fare. 

Dining halls will remain open through most of the break, closing only from Nov. 28-30. On these days, eligible first-generation or low-income students will receive a $40 UberEats voucher — a $10 daily increase over last year — due to a Yale College Council Proposal passed in September. 

November recess begins on Nov. 22 at 5 p.m.

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On Nov. 16, the YSO will present its “Fantasy” concert, where various genres of music will come together in the debating chamber of Woolsey Hall. This concert holds additional significance for Boughton, for whom this show will mark his final November performance before he steps down at the end of the academic year and closes out a six-year directorship. 

“The musical argument is thrown around this musical debating chamber, and it doesn’t matter whether it’s film music, whether it’s serious music, light music, jazz, whatever,” said Boughton. “All music has this extraordinary sound world that encapsulates and embraces life in a way.”

Featuring six pieces spanning from late 19th-century Romantic and early modern music to contemporary film scores, the program showcases the talents of the college symphony as they perform a breadth of genres. 

According to Tobias Liu ’26, YSO programming chair and former arts reporter for the News, the November concert offered an opportunity to perform shorter pieces from a variety of different composers. 

It can be difficult to sustain the momentum of audience attendance following the widely popular annual Halloween show, said Liu.

Liu, along with a programming planning committee, spent the last three months at the end of the previous academic year to plan the program for the 2024-25 year. YSO repertoire programming chooses music from three musical genres: the Western canon, American heritage and American contemporary music.

“As a preeminent American university, I think it’s important that students coming to Yale learn about their heritage and also learn about what’s happening outside the bubble of Yale,” said Liu.

Designing the November concert, Liu and the programming team decided to include Richard Strauss’s “Don Juan.” Despite being one of the most challenging pieces in YSO’s repertoire, there was huge support within the orchestra to play the piece. 

“Don Juan,” composed in 1888 during the German late-Romantic period, is a tone poem inspired by the legendary character of Don Juan, also known as Don Giovanni. He is known to be a seductive figure who pursues love relentlessly, which ultimately leads to his downfall.

“The opening of the Strauss [score] is actually used as an audition excerpt for a lot of professional orchestras, so a lot of violinists have played the opening minute or two,” said Liu. “It’s one of those staples in the repertoire that everyone [in YSO] knows or has heard or has attempted to play at some point.”

The concert program includes two film scores. From the iconic “Star Wars” soundtrack by John Williams, the orchestra will play “Princess Leia’s Theme,” “Main Title” and “The Imperial March.” YSO invited students from nearby New Haven public schools to listen to the legendary score live. 

Audiences can also listen to Erich Korngold’s “Sea Hawk Overture.” Additionally, the concert includes Bernard Rands’ “Symphonic Fantasy,” Aaron Copland’s “Fanfare for the Common Man,” and Carlos Simon’s “Tap” from “Four Black American Dances.”

“Fanfare for the Common Man,” a piece written by Copland in response to the United States’ entry into World War II, is carried entirely by brass and percussion musicians.

“I think this concert really highlights the skills of our brass in a nice way,” Keeley Brooks ’25, president of YSO, reflected. “In this concert, their parts are really hard. We’re definitely maxing out their lungs to the fullest capacity, but they’re sounding really great.” 

Unlike previous concerts, said Brooks, this one will feature no soloist; the orchestra is the real “star” of the concert. The concert will also be filmed, which is a relatively new practice for YSO. 

Bernard Rands’ “Symphonic Fantasy,” which will close the concert, was dedicated to Boughton by the composer himself.

The two shared conversations about their mutual admiration for Jean Sibelius’ “Symphony No. 7,” just as Rands received a commission from the Boston Symphony Orchestra. Inspired by their shared love for this one-movement work, Rands composed “Symphonic Fantasy” as a tribute. 

The Boston Symphony Orchestra premiered this piece, making YSO only the second ensemble to perform it.

“Some of the pieces, such as “Symphonic Fantasy” and the “Star Wars” literally fit within the theme of fantasy. But for [other pieces, such as] Carlos Simon’s “Tap,” we were thinking about fantasy in terms of how it has the power to transform historical realities through art,” said Liu. 

This past year, YSO, along with the Glee Club and Yale Concert Band, have become zero-credit classes. YSO rehearses every Monday and Wednesday from 4:30 to 6:30 p.m., with about eight rehearsals leading up to each concert. 

For the November show, rehearsals began in early October; the orchestra took a brief pause to prepare for their Halloween performance. 

“[Preparations for this show have been] wonderful, invigorating, demanding, but always providing unexpected surprises,” Boughton said. “They’re very skilled musicians, but learning new repertoire, particularly pieces like the Bernard Rands, is demanding of even a professional orchestra.”

Boughton, Liu, and Brooks all shared that YSO is more than just an orchestra — it is “a community.” 

Brooks said that the orchestra members become closer and are revitalized by the energy of the Halloween concert.  

“As a senior, I’m just starting to get a little bit nostalgic. I think any chance to get on stage with the orchestra is something I really look forward to,” Brooks said, “This concert cycle is very energetic and lively and I think it really plays on some of the strengths of the orchestra.”

Those who are interested in attending the concert can reserve their tickets online. 

Boughton encourages members of the Yale community and beyond to attend the concert, which he believes offers something larger than just music itself. 

“We don’t wake up in the morning and say, ‘Oh, what a wonderful sound that the birds are singing.’ We just kind of take it for granted,” Boughton said. “To bring all of these instruments together with the skills of the players in one ensemble with a musical argument being thrown around is kind of a metaphor for life, really. We’re debating with each other.” 

Woolsey Hall is located at 500 College St.

The post YSO’s “Fantasy” concert to highlight music’s power to transform historical realities through art appeared first on Yale Daily News.

Experts agreed that there is bipartisan support for research funding and any cuts would likely be the result of larger budgetary constrictions. However, they said, the outcomes of Congressional and presidential elections may affect which areas receive funding.

Yale receives federal research funding primarily from the National Institutes of Health, which so far this year has awarded Yale with a total of $643,720,557 in grants and contracts. Other agencies that fund research at Yale include the National Science Foundation, the Department of Energy, the Department of Defense and the Department of Education.

“We’re very dependent on income from different federal sources,” said Dean of Yale College Pericles Lewis.

Additionally, Yale recently posted a job listing for a DC-based director of federal relations to work as “an ambassador and the face of Yale in Washington,” advocating for “federal policies that advance Yale’s central missions.”

Support for funding universities persists despite controversies

In the lead-up to the 2024 presidential election, universities have been at the center of national debates over diversity, equity and inclusion policies, campus protests and dramatic showdowns of university presidents in Congress. Republican vice presidential candidate JD Vance LAW ’13 has referred to universities as “the enemy” and often criticizes elite universities.

In 2023, ahead of the Republican presidential primaries, Former President Donald Trump released the policy plan Agenda 47, which proposes “taxing, fining, and suing excessively large private university endowments” to endow a new “strictly non-political” institution free from “wokeness.”

Conservative think tank the Heritage Foundation also detailed plans for a second presidential term for Trump in a 900-page policy document known as Project 2025. Trump has distanced himself from the plan, but CNN reported that at least 140 former Trump administration officials were connected to Project 2025.

“Project 2025 will significantly impact schools like Yale,” wrote Royel Johnson, director of the Rossier School of Education at the University of Southern California, as it would redirect research funding towards conservative priorities. 

However, experts interviewed told the News that political debates about higher education are not likely to have much practical effect on funding levels for research universities.

The amount of money available to research universities depends on the total discretionary funding allocated by Congress in the federal budget. Stein said that in general, Democrats are more willing to increase this spending, but the “revenue framework for what all this looks like is going to be very much up in the air as Congress gets into these negotiations.”

Tristan Stein, associate director for higher education at the Bipartisan Policy Center, told the News that Congress members across the aisle understand the importance of research to the economy and to universities in their districts, regardless of partisan talking points. Federal funding for university research tends to have bipartisan support, and universities are likely to see similar funding levels under the leadership of either party, he believes.

Ben Cecil, the senior education policy advisor at center-left think tank Third Way, said that because the budgeting process is complicated to explain, federal funding is not usually a topic that persuades the average voter, so politicians do not discuss it on the campaign trail.

Data from the National Center for Science and Engineering Statistics shows a steady, moderate increase in the amount of research spending by universities funded by federal sources across all White House administrations from 1972 to 2022.

Lewis told the News that Yale provides “a lot of value for money” in terms of research, citing the University’s extensive contributions to knowledge across fields. He said that Yale and other elite universities are large drivers in the U.S.’s economy and reputation. 

“Whether you’re a Republican or a Democrat, I hope that whoever’s in office will recognize that,” he said, emphasizing that in addition to the economic benefits that STEM research brings, the contributions of humanities departments to society should not be overlooked. 

Congressional majority, president affect research priorities

Stein said that which research areas receive funding may vary based on different policy priorities between the parties and trade-offs in the budget negotiation process.

“Depending upon the outcome of this election, certain areas of research might receive more funding or would not be funded at all,” he said. “But then that’s a question about where the research dollars are being allocated, it’s not a question of how many dollars which institution is receiving.”

Johnson wrote that Project 2025 policies would shift priorities for agencies like NIH and NSF away from funding research on “critical social issues and inequities,” like racial justice, climate change and health disparities toward “projects more aligned with far-right conservative political interests.” 

Morgan Scott Polikoff, a professor of education at the University of Southern California, cited a section of Project 2025 which states that the NIH should “create and promote a research agenda that supports pro-life policies and explores the harms, both mental and physical, that abortion has wrought on women and girls.”

“Does this mean only pro-life research would get funded?” Polikoff questioned. “It’s not hard to imagine other kinds of ideological or ‘free speech’ litmus tests that ultimately would direct federal research dollars to conservative-leaning institutions.”

Kenneth K Wong, an education policy professor at Brown University, echoed the sentiment, writing that the policy differences between the two major presidential candidates that could affect the “federal research agenda” are substantial. 

Wong suggested that a Trump administration would constrain research funding in DEI, international research collaboration and reducing fossil fuels use, whereas Vice President Kamala Harris’ administration would increase federal funding for research on climate change, pandemic preparation, K-12 education, college access and workforce training.

However, the power to finalize a budget lies with Congress, which develops a budget resolution based on the president’s proposal and controls appropriations.

“Really the congressional majority and who’s running each side of the Capitol … is far more influential in the process, because they’re the ones that are ultimately making those decisions in the budget process,” Cecil said. “A lot of the determination of where the chips fall is who’s elected [to Congress] and who’s running these different committees.”

Robert Kelchen, head of the Department of Educational Leadership and Policy Studies at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, wrote that for major changes in higher education funding to occur, one political party would need unified control in Washington.

There would be little movement, he wrote, if the House of Representatives and the Senate or the White House are controlled by different parties.

“Under both Republican and Democratic administrations, we’ve seen some improvement in funding, especially when it’s perceived as being in the national interest, like things having to do with various kinds of science,” Lewis said.

The National Institutes of Health headquarters are located at 9000 Rockville Pike in Bethesda, Maryland. 

The post ANALYSIS: How the 2024 election could affect Yale’s federal research funding appeared first on Yale Daily News.

The Yale Dramatic Association is set to premiere its own rendition of the satirical play for its Fall Ex show on Oct. 10 to a sold-out audience at the Iseman Theater. The Dramat puts on “experimental” student directed, produced and performed productions. 

“The actors and the characters are not so separated. There’s a lot of intermingling. There’s times when you don’t know which is which. There’s times when they break the fourth wall and they talk straight at the audience,” said Millie Liao ’27, co-director of the play. “There’s so much to look forward to, it’s unconventional and breaks theater traditions.” 

Evie Kissinger ’27, who also directs the play, and Liao both took a course on Chekhov’s plays last year. They discovered a shared appreciation for Posner’s adaptation — Liao had read it in high school and Kissinger in another theater course. 

They pitched it to the Dramat board, and the play was approved as the Fall Ex production. Over the summer, the two, both first time directors from Los Angeles, collaborated and pre-blocked the show. 

The play’s style, described as “meta” by the production team, inspired Kissinger and Liao to set the stage in the round, with the audience seated in a circle and no defined front or back.

“We wanted to set it in a sort of open space so that it didn’t feel super grounded in a specific reality, because it breaks in and out of the story so much,” Kissinger said. 

According to lighting designer Allison Calkins ’27, she experimented with lights of different visibilities to reflect shifts in reality throughout the play. Calkins used white sheet fabric and Chroma-Q LED lights to emphasize moments of “theatricality” or intimate monologues. 

Setting the stage in the round posed a unique challenge for not only direction and acting, but also for stage design, according to Calkins. 

“[Setting ‘Stupid Fucking Bird’ in the round] really was rather difficult, because every single side is a front light for someone,” Calkins said. “It is a struggle between trying to maintain visibility, but also the traditional tenants that you’re taught in lighting.” 

The production team was in a race against time and faced scheduling conflicts — difficulties not unknown to student productions at Yale. Yet, the Fall Ex show is known to give shows a shorter rehearsal period before showtime. 

Actors are casted in the early fall, giving them five to six weeks to prepare for their roles. According to stage manager Alex Shadman ’27, this puts the Fall Ex show team into a time crunch. 

While scheduling was an immediate concern, said Shadman, the production remained on track due to the engagement and enthusiasm of the cast. 

“It’s been really beautiful to see how many people have really committed themselves and their time to this project,” Kissinger said, “I think the best thing about the whole project, though, has been seeing the cast become friends. They are all best friends now, and it’s really adorable.” 

Liao and Kissinger shared that while they have very different directing styles, it has proven to be complementary to one another. Griffin Santopietro ’28, who plays the role of Con — a struggling playwright — shared that he has found the rehearsal process to be very collaborative.

According to Santopietro, even though he felt like his plate was full with this production, he enjoyed the creative and exploratory process of working with the co-directors. 

While the cast might be small, the production team is composed of a large number of people who helped make the show possible, such as assistant directors, assistant producers, and set and costume designers. 

“I am most excited for [audience members to see] just how beautiful the show looks. I think all of the designers have done such an amazing job with their departments, lighting sets, props, costumes, sound, everything,” said Dhruv Bhalla ’27, who is the producer of the show. “And I think that same energy in the rehearsal room really does translate on stage to the actors.” 

The cast and crew hope that audience members continue to think about the themes and questions posed by the production even after the show ends. 

“Stupid Fucking Bird” is a play that discusses how theater is created and perceived, said Liao. She hopes that this introspective piece will encourage artists to think about their own creative processes, especially “at a place like Yale, where so much art is being made.” 

Santopietro also encouraged viewers to leave the show thinking about new forms and meanings of theater. 

“Talking about art, why we create it, what it’s supposed to do and its significance in the world and being a part of change, is something that this play talks about endlessly,” Liao said, “So we hope that people leave thinking about the process of creation and how we occupy the artistic space of Yale more.” 

“Stupid Fucking Bird” will run from Oct. 10 to 12 at 8 p.m., with an additional matinee show at 2 p.m. on Oct. 12.

The post “Stupid Fucking Bird” to premiere on Oct. 10 appeared first on Yale Daily News.

Founded through a donation from Steven Brill ’72 LAW ’75 and his wife Cynthia Margolin Brill ’72, the YJI aims to bridge the gap between Yale’s liberal arts education and the field of professional journalism. Open to all members of the Yale community, YJI offers resources such as events, workshops and professional counseling. Students who wish to demonstrate a passionate commitment to journalism can earn the designation of Yale Journalism Scholar, a distinction within the YJI program. 

“[The field of journalism] is not quite as predictable of an industry as some other professional fields you know, like medicine and law, where there’s a clear ladder to climb,” Haley Cohen Gilliland ’11, director of the Yale Journalism Initiative, told the News. “So the program was founded with the idea that it might be really helpful to have someone on campus who’s bridging the gap between really incredible writing instruction and reporting instruction.” 

The YJI sends out weekly newsletters that feature information on upcoming speaker events, workshops and drop-in-hours, along with listings for internships and job opportunities. These newsletters are put together by Gilliland, along with three students, Josie Reich ’26, a staff reporter at the News, Nathaniel Rosenberg ’25, the public editor at the News, and Collyn Robinson ’25, a former multimedia managing editor at the News, who serve as Yale Journalism Initiative student fellows. 

Past YJI speaker events have featured discussions with reporters such as Jodi Kantor, Eren Orbey ’19 and Martine Powers ’11. These events showcase a diverse range of journalism forms, including audio, investigative, long-form and narrative journalism. 

“The goal with the events really is to show as wide of a diversity of paths and coverage areas as possible and to get Yale students in the same room together that might work for different publications or would come from different backgrounds,” Gilliland said. 

During her speaker event, Powers discussed the emerging field of audio journalism and shared how she persuaded The Washington Post to allow her to create a narrative, multi-part investigative podcast on a topic completely outside her usual reporting.

“What I took away from it [Powers’ talk] was if you want to do cool things, think them through, make the pitch and then ask. And so I think I’ve just picked up little nuggets of wisdom from each of the YJI talks,” Reich said. “It’s so cool that these people come to Yale’s campus and all you have to do is pop into Davenport.” 

While the resources of the YJI are available to any member of the Yale community with an interest in journalism, students who are committed to pursuing journalism seriously can distinguish themselves by becoming Yale Journalism Scholars.

To become a Yale Journalism Scholar, students must apply and enroll in English 467, “Journalism,” the program’s foundational course. Additionally, they are required to either hold a senior editorial position in a Yale publication or publish a set number of articles in a Yale or non-Yale magazine or newspaper. 

They must also complete an advanced writing course beyond English 467 and undertake a summer internship at a professional journalism outlet. 

The YJI can provide grants for students holding underpaid or unpaid internships who have completed English 467 and are on track to become Yale Journalism Scholars.

While the program is less than two decades old, the student and alumni network is already robust. 

Issac Yu ’24, a former managing editor at the News and a previous Yale Journalism Initiative Student Fellow and Yale Journalism Scholar, told the News that he got his first and second journalism internship through speaking to alumni who were only a few years older than him. 

“I found a community through YJI of students who are also interested in pursuing journalism professionally. It’s not as common as fields like finance or tech, so it’s great to have a space where we’re all working toward similar goals and can support one another,” Yu said.  

In their conversations with the News, Yu, Reich and Gilliland all emphasized the value of mentorship and community within the program.

Yu also mentioned that mentoring others was a significant learning experience for him, having mentored around four dozen students during his fellowship year.

This upcoming year, the YJI is working on expanding their reach on campus, such as through going to speak to students in introductory writing courses about the program. 

“If you work for the YDN, you might not be necessarily run into people who work for the New Journal or even the YDN Magazine,” Gilliland said. “I’ve heard that quite a lot and so I think just creating spaces where lots of people interested in journalism at Yale are together is really powerful.” 

Brill is currently teaching the fall session of English 467.

The post A look inside the Yale Journalism Initiative appeared first on Yale Daily News.

Democracy liaisons, a branch of the Office of the Secretary and Vice President for University Life’s Yale Votes Initiative, are student employees dedicated to supporting Yalies in the voting process for the upcoming presidential election, helping with tasks such as voter registration and absentee ballot requests and submissions. Stationed in the Head of College offices across all residential colleges, each college has four liaisons, who were primarily hired from the existing group of college aides.

“It feels like every state and circumstance comes with different deadlines and restrictions, which can be hard to navigate, especially on top of academic, extracurricular, and social obligations,” Sonja Aibel ’28, democracy liaison for Davenport College, wrote to the News. “I think centralizing all of the information and resources necessary to navigate voter registration and vote-by-mail ballot requests in members of residential college communities could make voting more accessible, simple, and easy.” 

There are two separate organizations helping students to vote on campus. Yale Votes is run by the University, while Yale Votes: A Student Initiative is unaffiliated and led entirely by undergraduate and graduate students. 

Alex Moore ’26, president of Yale Votes: A Student Initiative, told the News that while the organizations are separate, they work very closely with one another. 

“We were involved with the [Yale Votes] website development and early stages of brainstorming related to what became the Democracy Liaison program,” he wrote. 

Moore added that the Office of the Secretary and Vice President for University Life also contributes to funding some of Yale Votes: A Student Initative’s work. 

In previous election years, Yale Votes mobilized undergraduate volunteers assigned to each residential college. While their role was similar to that of the current democracy liaisons, they were unpaid and not officially recognized by the University. 

Dean of Yale College Pericles Lewis told the News that he is working with Yale Votes to ensure students are registering to vote. He highlighted that because many students are from different states, he thinks having resources to help register is important. 

The liaisons received training and are fully compensated by the Office of the Secretary and Vice President for University Life. Liaisons are prepared to assist students in navigating varying state voting rules and will provide envelopes and stamps for submitting ballots or other necessary documents.

“I am excited about the University’s investment in hiring democracy liaisons because they will function as an important resource for students as they prepare to vote during this election cycle,” Julia Lin ’26, vice president of Yale Votes: A Student Initiative, told the News. “Students who are interested in facilitating civic engagement on campus can be compensated while helping to ensure that their peers feel ready to vote.” 

Moore shared that while on-campus students cannot receive mail at their residential college’s package center, they can receive government mail. He wrote that students living on campus should request their absentee ballots to be sent to their residential college’s address. Democracy liaisons will notify students by email once the ballots arrive at the college’s office. 

Yale Votes has also coordinated with Yale Mail to ensure election-related mail is separated from regular mail, with plans to expedite its delivery to college offices as the election nears. This effort aims to prevent delays in receiving important election materials.

“My group, Yale Votes: A Student Initiative, has many of its own efforts to make voting accessible to students!” Moore wrote to the News. “Democracy Liaisons are a great resource for students, and we believe it’s also important to proactively seek out students who might not voluntarily visit the Liaisons, and help them vote as well.” 

Democracy liaisons’ work hours vary by college and are posted outside the Head of College offices and in the dining halls. Each college will have three two-hour shifts between 5 and 7 p.m. on weekdays and one three-hour shift on Saturdays. The jobs will end right around election day, Nov. 5. Yale Votes: A Student Initiative leaders said the program will be assessed to determine whether it will be brought back in upcoming years. 

“I’m excited about being a democracy liaison because I care a lot about the upcoming election, and I particularly hope that youth and Gen Z turn out and have our voices heard this November,” Aibel said.

The 2024 U.S. presidential election is scheduled to take place on Nov. 5.

Correction, 9/17: Democracy liaisons’ work hours were corrected.

The post New University “democracy liaisons” aim to help Yalies vote appeared first on Yale Daily News.

Class delegates are Yalies who are chosen to represent a regional Yale club, Yale College class, a recognized shared interest group or graduate and professional school alumni association constituency to the YAA Assembly. The Yale Alumni Association holds elections for students to become class delegates.

“So often, a day [at Yale] telescopes into an entirely different 24 hours, only because you ran into someone on Cross Campus,” Jack Dozier ’27, a current class delegate candidate, wrote to the News. “What has brought me most joy is building connections and collaborating while drawing on the resources that are available to us at Yale, and I hope to be that connection builder between the YAA and the Class of 2027.”

The Assembly includes at-large delegates who represent alumni beyond designated constituencies. The number of delegates per constituency varies according to the YAA Constitution, and delegates generally hold their position for three years, starting July 1 and concluding June 30. For sophomores and juniors currently enrolled at Yale College, the term is limited to one year. 

The election results will be announced via email on Friday, Sept. 20.  

Landon Bishop ’27 — who is a staff reporter for the News — is interested in the position due to his experience working as the engagement co-coordinator for the Dwight Hall Executive Committee. After traveling this past semester to Philadelphia to inform Yale alumni of Dwight Hall’s current public service initiatives, he hopes to be an active contributor to bridging student-alumni relationships. 

“I’ve also been able to sit and offer my voice in meetings with different service organizations throughout New Haven and internationally, many of which have leaders who are Yale alumni or are connected in some way to the university,” Bishop wrote.

Tyler Schroder ’25 served as a class delegate this past year and is currently running for a senior executive position. In a statement to the News, Schroder wrote that he joined Students and Alumni of Yale, or STAY, in his first year and had the opportunity to interact with a diverse group of Yale alumni. 

Schroder said that STAY gave him the platform to support and participate in programs with the YAA Board of Governors, the Yale Alumni Association and the Careers, Life and Yale committee. 

“Running for delegate felt like a natural extension of my work at STAY and the greater YAA, and a great way to keep my class connected to the greater YAA Universe,” Schroder said. 

The chief role of a class delegate is to participate in the Annual YAA Assembly & Yale Alumni Fund Convocation, a two-day event beginning on a Thursday. This year, the convocation will take place from Nov. 14-15. 

The YAA Assembly is a leadership information and development program for alumni leaders affiliated with the alumni association. The assembly is also the body of alumni association delegates who serve as representatives of the alumni community. Traditionally, the YAA Assembly is held on campus before the weekend of the final home football game in the fall.

Jeannie Daniel, an associate director of recent graduate engagement, shared that after the YAA Assembly, delegates are encouraged to do a write-up of what they learned and how their classmates might be able to use the information they gathered.

The first day of the Yale Alumni Fund Convocation focuses on reconnecting alumni leaders with the university through campus tours, faculty discussions and volunteer training sessions. Friday features plenary sessions featuring Yale leadership, volunteer-led discussions and networking opportunities with other alumni leaders. 

Delegates also have the unique opportunity to attend the Yale Medal ceremony, the highest honor awarded by the Alumni Association for exceptional service to the University.

Additionally, Daniel mentioned that sometimes delegates may be asked to sit on a YAA committee to bring in a student voice and perspective.

Daniel told the News that the Yale Alumni Association offers virtual sessions for delegates throughout the year, and they “generally try to keep them in touch with other leaders who may be able to help navigate their student experiences.”

To run for sophomore and junior class delegate, a candidate must attend an information session at the Rose Alumni House, submit a declaration of candidacy certificate and submit a statement of interest that is used on the voting form. 

The respective sophomore and junior classes vote for their delegate via an online election. This year, nine candidates from the class of 2027 and two candidates from the class of 2026 are running for the position of delegate to the Yale Alumni Association. 

The senior class does not have a class delegate election; rather, they elect their class secretary and treasurer to delegate to a three-year team following their graduation. 

Candidates interviewed by the News cited the information session as helpful in understanding student involvement in the Yale Alumni Association. 

Schroder thought that the information session was helpful to guide students who are not exactly sure how they want to get involved. 

“There are multiple avenues for leadership at Yale, and students can find it confusing to find which roles are best for them,” Schroder wrote.

The Yale Alumni Association is located at 232 York St.

The post Yale Alumni Association delegates election underway appeared first on Yale Daily News.

Cruvinel Santiago completed her doctorate in physics in 2023 at Columbia. She previously attended Yale for her undergraduate degree where she majored in physics and was a member of Pierson College. In conversations with the News, Berkeley students expressed excitement and support for the new dean.  

“She is very compassionate, eager to establish connections with everyone, and has always been a great support to the FroCo team,” Charmaine Bayalan ’25, a current first-year counselor in Berkeley, wrote to the News. “I think that they made a great choice in appointing her as Berkeley’s new Dean and us FroCos and the entire Berkeley community are very lucky to have her.” 

Cruvinel Santiago’s appointment came after the role was vacant for three months after Dean Brianne Bilsky stepped down. 

At Yale, Cruvinel Santiago was involved in several campus organizations, including Yale Women in Physics, the Yale Science and Quantitative Reasoning Education Program as a peer mentor and the Office of International Students and Scholars as a peer liaison. 

In recent years, Cruvinel Santiago has conducted post-doctoral research at Stanford University, focusing on research supporting nuclear non-proliferation efforts. She has also done graduate research at Columbia and at the Laser Interferometer Gravitational-Wave Observatory at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. 

This year at Yale, Cruvinel Santiago has already familiarized herself with the Berkeley community through events like capture the flag and “Taste of Brazil,” a Dean’s Office welcome celebration, and scheduling one-on-one lunch meetings with students.

Cruvinel Santiago hosts hybrid drop-in hours four times a week for Berkeley students, as well as “Pawffice Hours” weekly with her dog, an English cream golden retriever named Fubá.

“She’s made a good point of telling people to stop by … she has made herself more present, like in the courtyard where you can pet her dog. It gives an avenue to humanizing her,” Maya Alvear ’25, a Berkeley FroCo, said.

Kyan Ramsay ’27, a member of the Berkeley College Council, wrote to the News that he’s often seen Cruvinel Santiago getting to know students individually in the dining hall and other Berkeley spaces. 

Ramsay also mentioned that though the Berkeley College Council primarily works with the head of college, Cruvinel Santiago has shown up for many of the council’s events and encouraged people to get involved.

Henry Hoak ’28, a first-year Berkeley student, said that he can relate to Cruvinel Santiago strongly because she is a recent Yale College graduate and thinks “it is exciting that [they] are both starting new journeys at Yale at the same time.” 

Alvear emphasized that because Cruvinel Santiago attended Yale and was knowledgeable of the FroCo system through her affiliation with Pierson College, she’s been especially supportive of the Berkeley FroCo team. 

Bayalan and the rest of the Berkeley FroCos got to know Cruvinel Santiago during FroCo training prior to the academic year. Bayalan recalled that Cruvinel Santiago made their 12-hour training sessions more lively by making the FroCos shirts and stickers and constantly exuding positive energy. 

“She made it a point to emphasize to us that we didn’t have to only be a FroCo and not a student, we needed to take care of ourselves too and prioritize our own time,” Alvear told the News. “So I think she really cares about the students, just in the things that she said and the way that she supported the FroCo’s. I’m sure that will extend to everyone.”

Cruvinel Santiago was not available to comment for the article. 

Berkeley College is located at 205 Elm St.

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