Is Faust to be (or not to be) the first female president of Harvard?

Recent headlines have inspired a sense of déjà vu. When I attended Harvard, Derek Bok was the university's president and the tee-shirts for an organization I belonged to read something like this:

You've Finally Met Your Match
A Harvard-Radcliffe Woman

I've long since graduated, but Derek Bok is back in the President's office and a woman with Harvard and Radcliffe ties - Drew Gilpin Faust - may soon assume the position. Or so it is rumored.

Is Drew Gilpin Faust (the dean of Harvard's Radcliffe Institute for Advanced Study and the Lincoln Professor of History at Harvard), to be or not to be named the first female president of Harvard University? That is the question whose answer many are waiting with baited breath to learn.

The wait won't be long. The New York Times reports: "Harvard’s 30-member Board of Overseers is to meet Sunday and is expected to give her final approval, according to the officials." Nonetheless, some reports have jumped the gun.

Appointing Faust, or any of the other highly qualified women candidates, 28th President of the 371-year old university would be both historic and ironic.

The milestone would be momentous because the Harvard presidency, considered "the most prestigious in higher education," has never been held by a woman. Selection of a woman would make Harvard (oft-touted as an academic trendsetter) the fourth of the eight Ivy League universities to have a woman at the helm. "Appointing a female to fill the top administrative position would be "a tremendous step for Harvard because in some ways this really was the last glass ceiling in higher education," said Susan Scrimshaw, president of Simmons College in Boston.

Appointing a woman would be ironic because one of the controversies that led the previous president, Lawrence Summers, to resign last year was sparked by comments that were commonly construed to be sexist. His remarks at a January 14, 2005 NBER conference session entitled, "Diversifying the Science and Engineering Workforce: Women, Underrepresented Minorities and their S. and E. careers," suggested that "innate differences," innate ability," or "natural ability" might account for the under-representation of women and girls in the upper echelons of science and mathematics.

Should a woman become Harvard's next president, she would (as Reuters reports) "steer the biggest changes to Harvard's curriculum in three decades and preside over the first phases of an ambitious multi-billion dollar campus expansion aimed at making Harvard a leading hub for biological and life sciences."

Summers said his comments were intended to provoke discussion. What they did was ignite a firestorm of criticism and contention. They also produced possibilities for positive change.

For example, weeks after making his remarks at the Science and Engineering conference, Summer "announced two university-wide task forces aimed at advancing female faculty and encouraging women in science." Additionally, his resignation may have made way for a woman to blaze a trail up the ivory tower and all the way to the corner office.

Harvard Graduate School of Education Professor, Judith McLaughlin (an expert in university presidencies), clarified:

Harvard is not choosing Drew Faust because of the women and science thing but because she is the best person for the job.

Can she do it? Sure she can. Is it going to be hard. Absolutely. But this is one very smart and politically savvy candidate.

Indeed, Harvard may have made a match.

Two sorry extremes

"Love means never having to say you're sorry," is an oft-quoted misquote from Erich Segal's Love Story script. [Apparently, the line, as written, was, "Love means not ever having to say you're sorry."] I wholeheartedly disagree. In some circumstances, a sincere apology can go a long way.

At some other times, apologizing constitutes talking loud and saying nothing. It is those instances - when it's better to keep one's sorries to oneself and, instead, straighten up and fly right - that three prominent artists have addressed in popular publications and performances.

Ntozake Shange published these lines (in 1977) and staged them (in 1992) in: For Colored Girls Who Have Considered Suicide/When the Rainbow Is Enuf.

(Laurence Fishburne, as) Ike Turner, snarled, "Yeah, you sorry all right," before manhandling (Angela Bassett, as) his wife/performance partner Tina Turner, in a scene from the 1993 biopic, What's Love Got to Do With It? Ultimately, the universe prevailed to right that wrong; it was Ike who was sorry when Tina pulled the plug on that discordant situation.

More recently, Madonna sang these lyrics to "Sorry" (1995) (on her Confessions albums) and feigned some feisty fist- and foot-work to underscore her point.

Nassau Community College has driven up the cost of parking on campus

One thing I miss about living in southern California is the availability of valet parking practically everywhere one would want to drive, including the supermarket and public library. When I first encountered the practice, I thought it was over-the-top, like some scenes in Bravo TV's Real Housewives of Orange County. However, I quickly grew accustomed to giving my keys to parking attendants and going about my business, then calling for my car and having it brought right to me. The service wasn't free but the convenience was worth it, especially when I had lots to carry or when it rained.

(If you've heard the song: "It Never Rains in Southern California," don't believe the hype.)

Back home in New York, valet parking seems to be reserved for high end destinations. Finding free parking at lower-end, crowded locations - even in some suburbs - can be a real pain in the posterior and the cost of paid parking can put a sizable dent in one's wallet.

Consider, for instance, Nassau Community College in Garden City, a Long Island suburb. It's a commuter school in a bedroom community, where I have rarely found it convenient to park. Visiting many buildings on campus has required guzzling gallons of gas to search for an available parking space and then hiking a considerable distance.

One rainy day, in particular, when visiting to videotape a racquetball class (for a cultural documentation project), I had to lug my equipment, laptop, purse and umbrella from the far end of the West 4B Student and Visitor Parking Lot all the way to the Physical Education Complex (which abuts the far east end of West 5 Staff Parking). As I crossed that soggy plain, I mused: "By George, what I wouldn't give right now for the privilege of paying for valet parking."

Ironically, paid parking is now not a privilege, but obligatory at Nassau Community College. A recently introduced directive has driven up the cost of parking on campus from zero to five, seventeen fifty or forty five dollars, depending on the semester. Those are fairly high-octane fees for some students. However, unlike valet service, the parking premiums are unlikely to crank up convenience to drivers. (Parking spaces can't be reserved and parking attendants will not be hired.) Rather, what those fees (and fines for parking violations) will undoubtedly do is fill up the coffers of Nassau Community College (and of the Nassau County Traffic and Parking Violations Agency).

The Nassau Community College Student Vehicle Registration Program must have been mapped out by some alchemist, who saw the bumper crop of cars on campus as gold in them thar hills. (I know it's a stretch to refer to the same site as a plain and as hills, but down-rev, Bev. Haven't you ever heard of artistic license?) Although some students take public transportation or carpool to campus, most drive there directly from work and elsewhere, and the demand for parking is inelastic.

The new parking rules are effective this semester. I'm familiar with the details because I helped a less computer-savvy friend register two vehicles online. The rules offer no bulk discounts or transferable parking passes for students who drive multiple cars or free passes for the "Winterim" and Summer terms. Moreover, the vehicle registration fees are neither refundable nor pro-ratable for students who withdraw early or register late.

I personally care about this development because I frequently visit Nassau Community College for various reasons. As a visitor, I won't have to pay to park on campus but will bear an opportunity cost: stopping at the Public Safety Office (which is nowhere near where I usually park) to get a temporary vehicle pass.

If I sound like I begrudge Nassau Community College its new revenue source, don't get me wrong. "Render unto Caesar" and all. Moreover, according the January 2007 letter addressed by the Vice President of Academic Services to registered students, the program has worthwhile motives: "to accommodate the parking needs of the campus as well as provide additional security on campus."

There's just something about the tone and text of the school's Vehicle Registration Program Information Sheet that guns my motor. Here, take the wheel and read this excerpt for yourself:

Q. How much does the program cost?
A. The cost is $17.50 in the Spring and the Fall semesters. In the Fall ONLY an annual permit is available for $45 which is good for the academic year (Fall, Winterim, Spring and Summer). Registration for the Winterim is $5, as is registration for the Summer terms. Students are strongly encouraged to register their vehicle online and pay by credit card so that waiting in long lines to make payment by cash or check can be avoided. Please note that there is "no extra charge" for credit card payments.

Q. Does this guarantee a parking spot?
A. All vehicles must be registered to be legally permitted to park on campus. However, registration does not guarantee a parking space in any particular parking area. In time the program should prevent non-registered vehicles from parking on campus, thereby making more space available for registered vehicles. There is currently ample parking available on campus for all students although some spaces may not be conveniently located.

Q. Is it necessary to register?
A. Unregistered vehicles will be subject to summonses and towing. The summons will come from Nassau County, not the College.

Q. What will the money collected be used for?
A. The fees will be used to repair Nassau Community College's Parking lots and enhance security on campus.

Q. Why do I have to register more than one vehicle if I intend to bring more than one vehicle on campus?
A. If you cannot decide to bring only one vehicle on campus you must register every vehicle that you intend to bring each semester. If you have a problem with your registered vehicle we will accommodate you with temporary permits on a very limited basis. However, remember that three registration fees for one semester are cheaper than one $90.00 summons.

"Honoring America's Veteran Entrepreneurs" Youth Essay Contest

If I weren't to old to enter the 2007 "Honoring America's Veteran Entrepreneurs" Youth Essay Contest, I'd be stuck between a rock and a hard place, the devil and the deep blue sea. The difficulty would be choosing one of three compelling subjects. (More about them, below)

The contest is sponsored by The Veterans Corporation ("Where Veteran Entrepreneurs Partner For Success") in partnership with the Veterans Business Journal (tagline: "Entrepreneurship, Contracting and Patriotism") and Military.com ("All the Benefits of Service"). The contest is part of Entrepreneurship Week 2007, which is presented by the Inc.com ("The Daily Resource For Entrepreneurs") and The New York Times ("21st Century News, Information, Entertainment").

This is the assignment: "Tell us why your parent or grandparent should be honored as Veteran Entrepreneur of the Year, and you could win a free trip to Washington, D.C." More specifically:

Write an original essay telling us why your parent or grandparent, who is a Veteran of the United States Armed Forces or a member of the National Guard or Reserve, and who is also an entrepreneur or business owner, should be named "Veteran Entrepreneur of the Year".

Essays should answer the following questions:

• What skills or training did your parent or grandparent receive in the military that made him or her a better entrepreneur?
• How does your parent or grandparent contribute to your family, your local community, and the nation as a Veteran and entrepreneur?
• Do you have any aspirations to following in the footsteps of your parent or grandparent in the military or as an entrepreneur?

Here's why picking a protagonist would be hard. My paternal grandfather was a U.S. Navy veteran. He migrated from the deep south to New York, where he established a successful commercial limousine service and profitable rental properties. My father was a U.S. Marine Corps veteran who served during the Korean War and later worked as an aircraft electrician. One of his responsibilities was supervising the aeronautical electricians who serviced Air Force One, in which he installed bottle warmers as a favor for Jackie Kennedy. During layoffs at Lockheed and after retiring, Dad engaged in several entrepreneurial ventures. My stepfather is a formal Naval officer who is now a law firm partner. All three are great role models with compelling tales that are worth telling.

Decisions, decisions. If they were mine to make, I'd write about my stepfather this year, since he's still living and might appreciate the testimonial. In 2008 and 2009, respectively, I would feature my father and grandfather. In all three years, I would also submit my essays (whether they won or not), to the Veterans History Project.

Since I'm over 18, I leave it to my nephews and other kids who meet the contest eligibility requirements to choose a hero to write about. These are the rules:

Eligibility: all United States students, ages 12-18, are eligible to compete.

Requirements: Essays should be no longer than 1,000 words and must be postmarked or emailed no later than February 16, 2007. Essays must be accompanied by a completed contest entry form, which can be downloaded [at the Essay Contest Home].

If you enter, good luck! And send me your story. As my firm, 360 MERIDIAN, LLC, is a Veterans History Project Official Partner, I may select your story to share on air or online. You can access my contact information and learn about my media work here.

SCORE Radio’s next guest is a knockout: boxing champion-turned-entrepreneur, Doug (”the Cobra”) DeWitt

It’s going down! “It” is the Valentine’s Day match of 2007.

In one corner will be: three-time middleweight boxing world champion/trainer/actor Doug (”the Cobra”) DeWitt. In the other: SCORE Chapter 306 counselor, Chuck Auerbach. The men will face off across mics, not mats.

The venue: New York radio WVOX 1460 AM, not a ring. The time: 11:30 AM to high noon, Eastern.

For some, going rounds with the Cobra has been a challenge, if not a TKO. But this is a sweetheart of a match that Chuck (a heavy-hitter with SCORE Westchester) can handle. You see, Chuck will be interviewing Doug about the prizefighter’s “boxer’s workout” training program.

Here’s how Wikipedia\Doug_Dewitt describes the boxer’s business, Doug DeWitt’s Boxing Studio:

He offers extensive work on speed bag, heavy bag, and wall bag. The focus is to improve hand speed, coordination, and strength. Technique, punch combinations, and defensive movements are taught one-on-one with hand pad contact.

Incorporated into the training is an intensive cardio workout with jump rope repetition, lightweight training, and use of the medicine ball. Footwork and ring movement are also taught.

Class format is specifically designed to be a “boxer’s workout.” The training for both men and women is modified to each individual’s capabilities.

Among those trained [have been]: Doug LaBassa, Anthony Scagleone, Tim Herlihy, John Norrison, Julien LaScala, [and] Mario Penzarri.

Doug trains both children and adults. DougDeWittBoxing.com, describes the children’s classes thusly:

The Ultimate Way To Build Confidence, Self-Esteem, Develop Self-Discipline, Self-Control, and Athletic Skills, While Having Lots of Fun!

DeWitt’s site describes the adult classes as “a complete workout for men and women. […] Classes are offered in a group setting or scheduled one-on-one to accommodate the student’s schedule.”

Come join the fray. Tune your radio to WVOX 1460 AM, listen live online at WVOX.com, or phone the call-in line: (01) 914.636.0110.

The countdown has begun. Get ready to rumble!

[This is a reprint of a SCORE Chapter 306 blog post by Lisa Tolliver.]

'I Love New York', episode 3: "Big Ballers" or "Big Bawlers"?

[ALL PHOTO CREDITS: VH1.com]

VH1.com entitled I Love New York, episode 3:"Big Ballers." It should be: "Big Bawlers."

[CAPTION: Bonez (Kevin John) and the boyz comfort Whiteboy (Joshua Gallander) on VH1's I Love New York, episode 3.]

Count me among the crybabies. God forgive me, I laughed 'til tears trickled and dragged others to watch with me when muscular mover and shaker, Pootie, presented his money talk to the gang of three weaves (1, 2, 3), and then walked out wailing.

[CAPTION: Bonez comforts Pootie (Lamonty) on VH1's I Love New York, episode 3.]

In short, Pootie broke it down to New York (Tiffany Pollard), Sister Patterson and Omarosa that he was flat broke....

[CAPTION: Was Pootie telegraphing more than his financial state?]

...then he broke under the pressure of their scorn and had an emotional breakdown. I'm not lying; he was flying. Down the stairs, that is.

[CAPTION: Driven by a combination of compassion and curiosity, some of the competitors check on Pootie, who survived his fling down the stairs and dinner later that night with Sister Patterson but voluntarily withdrew from the show.]

In contrast, I had sympathy for Whiteboy, who tearfully mourned the death of a friend. (Watch the video.) I also respected Whiteboy for being man enough to know real men do cry. Sometimes.

Too bad chronic crybaby Romance (Ricky Perillo) didn't get the memo explaining when it's appropriate to cry and when it's just plain pathological. He cried us some rivers in episodes 1 and 2, which won no points with the rest of the cast or this viewer.

The same couldn't be said for the tearful, tipsy Tiffany in episode 2 ("Mangeant"), who broke down when "keeping it funky" about not wanting to get hurt again. Or so she said.

Apparently, learning that 12 Pack (David Amerman) might have a girlfriend and Trendz (Hashim Smith) had brought 30 music demo CDs to distribute without her knowledge salted unhealed wounds. Specifically, New York confided: Flavor Flav had seemed to be "really into" her during the Flavor of Love 1 and 2, but the Black-chelor burned her by rolling with Hoopz (Nicole Alexander) in season 1 and Deelishis (London Charles) in season 2.

I guess you'd cry, too (all the way to the bank), if it happened to you on one of VH1's highest rated shows.

RE: Top 10 Teacher Tips for Getting Tip-Top Homework Grades

David Hirning's "Top 10 Teacher Tips for Getting Tip-Top Homework Grades," although an A+ article, makes me raise my hand with a question. Why does MSN - Encarta categorize it as "Elementary"?

Don't the ten tips apply equally to everyone, of every age, in every book-related learning and test-prep situation? Wouldn't heeding them be wise, whether studying for an examination, a standardized test, a professional exam, a test to obtain U.S. citizenship or a written test for a driver's license?

Since I think "Yessiree, Bob" answers both questions, I e-mailed the article to a contemporary who's taking university courses, his 13-year-old son, and my teenaged nephews. I will also share copies of these (and other) useful studying and test-taking tips with others who might benefit. Standardized tests are looming, and I want my peeps to be well-prepared.

The peeps I want to prepare include my students at Study Works (whose tagline is: "Your Complete Source for SAT, SAT II & ACT Prep"). To learn what Study Works can do for you, contact Bonnie and Laurie, at (01) 800-783-1728 or (01) 914-962-4SAT.

In addition to applying David Hirning's top ten tips and test-taking strategies and resources, such as those offered by Study Works, ALL successful students must do the following:

Today's Lisa Tolliver Show - at high noon, ET - on NY Radio WVOX 1460 AM

Join my guests and me at high noon for today's installment of the Lisa Tolliver Show. If you don't, here's what you'll miss:

• Frank Giordano, Esq. - We'll discuss the Thomas C. Giordano Educational Fund.
• Marianne Partridge - She'll share today's safety tip from WEVR-MRC. It can mean the difference between life and death during a disaster or emergency.
• Today's USPS message - Getting your passport and USPS passport fairs.

Here's how to hear and share:

• Tune your radio to WVOX 1460 AM in the NY-NJ-CT area
• Listen live online at www.wvox.com, worldwide
• Phone (01) 914 636 0110

If you're listening, we're listening. Talk with us!

Come learn how to turn me on.###

A pimpernel by any name is no shrinking violet

What's in a name? That which we call a rose
By any other name would smell as sweet

-Source: Juliet Capulet in Romeo and Juliet (William Shakespeare, 1594)

-Significance: Phrases.org.uk

This morning, I viewed MSNBC's Headliners and Legends: Nelson Mandela. The informative biopic, hosted by Lester Holt, was worth watching.

If you've read, watched or heard any biographies of Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela, then you're familiar with the struggles and sacrifices, contributions and accomplishments for which the South African freedom fighter-political prisoner-statesman-Nobel Prize winner is famous. You also know he was once called the "Black Pimpernel." However, do you know why or what a pimpernel is?

If you don't, you're not alone. Today, the word pimpernel is commonly heard yet relatively obscure. Here is what it means and its several contexts.

In nature: A pimpernel is a flower. Like members of the rose family, pimpernel buds can bloom in any one of a number of colors, some of which have been embedded with special meanings. Especially well-known is the scarlet pimpernel (Anagallis arvensis‎, pictured right, courtesy of Wikipedia).

In literature, on stage and on screen: A European writer cultivated the popularity of the plant with her stageplay, The Scarlet Pimpernel, and by publishing an associated book series. Wikipedia - Scarlett Pimpernel (which furnished the book cover image to the left) explains:

The Scarlet Pimpernel is a classic play and adventure novel by Baroness Emmuska Orczy, set during the French Revolution. It was first produced as record-breaking play, in an adaptation by Julia Neilson and Fred Terry, which greatly helped the publication of the novel in 1905. The story is seen as a precursor to the spy fiction and the superhero genres. It gave rise to numerous sequels, and has been adapted several times for television and film.

The action takes place during the French Revolution, when a secret society of English aristocrats, called the League of the Scarlet Pimpernel, is engaged in rescuing their French counterparts from the guillotine. Their leader, the Scarlet Pimpernel, takes his nickname from the small red flower with which he signs his messages. No one except his small band of 19 followers, and possibly the Prince of Wales, knows his true identity.

In history and politics: What does all this have to do with Nelson Mandela? The answer, in Mandela's own words, lies in this excerpt from Long Walk to Freedom, Chapter 40:

During those early months, when there was a warrant for my arrest and I was being pursued by the police, my outlaw existence caught the imagination of the press. Articles claiming that I had been here and there were on the front pages. Roadblocks were instituted all over the country, but the police repeatedly came up empty-handed. I was dubbed the Black Pimpernel, a somewhat derogatory adaptation of Baroness Orczy's fictional character the Scarlet Pimpernel, who daringly evaded capture during the French Revolution.

The root of the matter. The Scarlet Pimpernel and the Black Pimpernel were no shrinking violets. Although they operated - at least sometimes - sub rosa and were named after flowers, both political activists left larger-than-life marks. Of course, it should go without saying, the legacy of real-life hero Nelson Mandela is far more profound and notable than that of the fictional character.

Don't miss your favorite radio show. Record it!

Whether it's music, talk or talk about music, don't miss your favorite radio show. Record it and listen on demand! Telegraph | Digital Life | Bootcamp 340: recording internet radio explains how.