It has been made clear by Vice President for Student and Academic Services Susan Murphy ’73 that program houses are not going anywhere in the near future. With that in mind, it is time to turn the discussion away from a debate about whether or not the program houses should exist, and refocus on how to better represent and integrate program houses into the community at large.

St. Vincent took the Castaways stage by storm last Thursday night, infecting the crowd with her overwhelming enthusiasm and lovable charm. A newcomer to Ithaca, St. Vincent became acquainted with Finger Lakes region while her fans were also experiencing something fresh: an introduction into the singer’s captivating musical world.

On a cold and rainy night this past Friday evening, members of the Board of Trustees, scurrying from dinner to a gala in Bailey Hall, were met with an unlikely greeting: peaceful, yet pronounced, student protest.

A self-described “coalition of students of color” staged the protest to shine light on what they consider to be a lack of administrative support for the needs of various minority communities on campus. Among these concerns were minimal financial resources for Asian and Asian-American students, neglect of student input in the decision to reassign Ujamaa Residential Housing Director Ken Glover and insufficient staffing at the Office of Minority Educational Affairs.

It’s that time of the year again. You know, when the grass on campus is meticulously trimmed and the landscaping is immaculate, all of which is meant to impress them HEROIC trustees who are here for their semi-annual trek to Ithaca. It’s just like parent’s visiting day at sleep away camp, when the VILLAINOUS sloppy joes would be replaced with HEROIC steak just for the day, so you could convince your parents that their money was being well spent ...

What does it take for a group of people to be listened to — to be heard loud and clear? Riots, rallies, picketing and sit-ins are so ’60s. It is the age of Facebook groups, twittering and blogs; but it should not always have to come to such things.