Op Ed

Photo of Brown’s campus with a large brick building in the center and green lawn in front.

Serrano: When it comes to taking courses S/NC, students could benefit from guardrails

By Roberto Serrano | February 17

One of the gems in the crown of Brown’s Open Curriculum is the Satisfactory/No Credit grading option. It helps to foster creative exploration of courses far afield from a student’s main interest, and can embolden students to take courses that they would not otherwise attempt. However, S/NC does ...

Boas ’06.5: DPS should be reintegrated into the Brown community

By Benjamin Boas | January 21

In December 2006, I finished my last semester as a student at Brown and made a career choice that made me unpopular on campus: I went to work for the University’s Department of Public Safety. Overnight, longtime friends became distant, and the group of alums I’d planned to live with pulled their ...

Brown University's Department of Public Safety Station.

VP Poitevien ’94 MD’98: Equitable access is foundational to enabling students to thrive at Brown

By Patricia Poitevien | November 24

This summer, when I began my new role as Brown’s vice president for campus life, I shared with students and families that my sense of belonging at Brown was formed in my residence hall. My first-year floormate and I came from entirely different worlds, yet the community we built together shaped my ...

Students scattered among a green quad with dormitory housing surrounding it.

Davis ’29: Students must continue to shape Brown’s future, not stay complacent

By Demetrius Davis | November 23

Before coming to Brown, I knew that higher education was under threat from an increasingly polarized political climate. But, before beginning my tenure as first-year representative on the Undergraduate Council of Students, I did not anticipate how deeply students themselves could shape an institution. ...

Wrighten ’25: Triple concentrations represent the best of the Open Curriculum — they should come back

By Gabriella Wrighten | November 19

I graduated from Brown last spring with a triple concentration in modern culture and media, literary arts and English. Every semester, someone would ask why I would willingly take on five classes of work to fulfill my requirements. My answer was simple: I like learning these subjects, and I’m using ...

Photo of University Hall, where Brown University administrative offices are located.

Cannuscio ’92 P’26: Vaccines save lives — far beyond your own

By Carolyn Cannuscio | November 17

Well before you jam into trains and cars and planes for the holidays, please get your flu shot, and your COVID-19 shot, too.

Photo of Student Health & Wellness Center at Brown.

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Kaplan ’92: What the celebration of Jewish life says about Brown

By James Kaplan | November 17

Everyone worried it might rain, but the night of Nov. 7 was crisp and clear, as beautiful an evening as you can imagine in New England. Under a tent on Pembroke Field, Cantor Lizzie Shammash ’91 sang Shalom Aleichem and Rabbi Ayelet Cohen ’96 recited Motzi and Kiddush — the Jewish blessings for ...

A picture of a "130 Years Of Jewish Life at Brown" banner in front of the Stephen Robert '62 Campus Center.

Opinions

Noel ’25.5, Smith ’27, Duff ’27: Program houses should be self-governing safe spaces

By Madison Duff, Shamariah Smith and Vanya Noel | November 14

On Nov. 11, The Herald reported that residential theme and program house leaders will no longer be allowed to select their residents, with the current system being replaced by a lottery starting next year. As current and former presidents of Harambee House — “a place where Black scholars and allies ...

A photo of Harambee House, a brick building.

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Morrison ’26, Luby ’28, Madahar ’26, Raffa ’28, Sofianou ’26: Rhode Island must urgently support multilingual education

By Lavleen Madahar, Dimitra Sofianou, Kayla Morrison, Luca Raffa and Lily Luby | November 7

Between 2010 and 2020, Rhode Island experienced the highest growth of multilingual language learners in the nation, according to a recent report from the Rhode Island Department of Education. MLL enrollment more than doubled statewide between 2013 and 2023, while some urban core districts, such as North ...

Photo of Rhode Island State House on Nov. 3.

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VP Guterl: Students can shape Brown’s future by completing the campus climate survey

By Matthew Guterl | October 28

In the coming months, a committee of faculty, staff and students will draft an important framework for the University’s future — one which will define a campus where every member of our community enjoys the benefits of opportunity, belonging and access, and where we collectively value and respect ...

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Lander, Davis MA’97 PhD’11: Our community deserves financial transparency

By Brian Lander and Denise Davis | October 14

Brown is currently facing two deficits: one of accounting and the other of accountability. While many are preoccupied with the current crisis about whether Brown will sign the compact presented by the Trump administration, we must not lose sight of the ongoing crisis of the University budget. In their ...

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Souweine ’01: Don’t trade Brown’s brand for Trump’s compact

By Daniel Souweine | October 10

After Brown’s decision this summer to strike a “deal” with the Trump administration, I unhappily predicted that Trump would soon return with more demands. It didn’t take long.

A picture of a stone detail on Lyman Hall, which depicts Brown's crest, with the words Lyman Hall above it.

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Zang ’26: Two years after Oct. 7, I have never been prouder to be Jewish

By Victoria Zang | October 7

Today marks two years since the Oct. 7 massacre, and I feel angry. I feel angry at the horrors, the loss and the way it destroyed my sense of safety.

Blue and white display on a green field titled with a blue banner saying "Let Them Go Now". The display is made up of two white tents and tables. In front of the tables are multiple large cardboard signs emulating milk cartons with kidnapping victims.

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Stone GS: Lessons from Jane Goodall in her final days

By Montana Stone | October 6

The world has lost a voice of extraordinary wisdom and hope with the passing of Jane Goodall. For many of us in conservation science, her life’s work was more than research — it was a compass pointing toward humility, curiosity and responsibility.

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Suthy ’27, Redlich ’28, Luby ’28, Gale ’29, Kraus ’29: Brown students ought to care about the Ward 2 special election

By Rebecca Gale, Nihil Suthy, Lily Luby, Alissa Kraus and Avery Redlich | October 3

On Aug. 1, Ward 2 Councilwoman Helen Anthony announced her resignation from office, a year before her term’s expiration. To fill her now-vacant seat — which encompasses the majority of Brown’s campus and parts of College Hill — Providence will hold a special primary election on Nov. 4 and a ...

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Leggat-Barr ’28: Democrats need to disagree more

By Tommy Leggat-Barr | October 2

Having worked as a field organizer for U.S. Rep. Jared Golden (D-M.E. 2), one of the most conservative Democrats in the U.S. House of Representatives, I often receive texts that criticize his recent votes and statements, asking how he could possibly be legislating in this manner. While many of his votes ...

Illustration of Democrats fighting with each other.

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Rounds MD’28: In defense of the common good

By Arran Rounds | September 30

Our country is living through a fragile time. The divisions we face cut deep. Seeping into families, neighborhoods and the spaces where we once found common ground. Every tragedy seems to be politicized. Every hardship is turned into fuel for outrage. And every cycle of mistrust leaves us more likely ...

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Lindemann ’29: Brown students must defend gay representation beyond College Hill

By Beatriz Lindemann | September 29

For a while, gay people were all I knew. I have two gay dads and have lived in Miami Beach, Florida my whole life. Queer representation was a crucial part of my upbringing. My parents have countless gay and lesbian friends who are some of my greatest role models. But not all children have the opportunity ...

An illustration of books arranged in a rainbow order with a cancel sign behind it.

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Brewer GS, Brown ’08 MD’12, Sokol, Tobin-Tyler, Zhang ’27: The University’s agreement with the federal government is setting the stage for the erosion of trans rights

By Liz Tobin-Tyler, Natasha Sokol, Jacqueline Zhang, Bailey Brewer and Ben Brown | September 25

We write to you as researchers and students affiliated with the Brown Reproductive Justice Collaborative and as people whose work is grounded in the principle of bodily autonomy. Although the University’s voluntary resolution agreement with the U.S. government will allow many of us to return to some ...

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Yeung ’29: Careerism has no place at Brown

By Christian Yeung | September 25

At this year’s opening convocation, President Christina Paxson P’19 P’MD’20 stated that Brown’s Open Curriculum is “an approach to education that’s designed to encourage intellectual exploration, which means taking risks.” With thousands of available courses, the ability to take classes ...