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No Dogs Allowed on Barnard's Campus—Except Shapiro's Pooch
PUBLISHED MARCH 7, 2008
Barnard College strictly adheres to its policy against having dogs on campus, but the school seems to have made an exception for President Judith Shapiro’s furry friend.
An ebony poodle whose affable conduct graces the streets and schools of Morningside Heights, Nora has been known to accompany Shapiro to a variety events on campus, including President’s Council meetings.
Barnard Dean Dorothy Denburg said Shapiro’s practice lies well within the bounds of professionalism, noting that members of the council have been working together for over seven years. On the topic of Nora’s behavior, Denburg called her “a playful puppy.” Nora used to saunter about the council room looking for someone to play with, but “she has matured over the course of the year” and now her presence “injects some levity” into the room, Denburg said.
“I think her status as the presidential dog has earned her her place,” Denburg noted, adding that her status permits a slight bending of the rules.
Nora seems a well-known figure on the college’s grounds. When President Shapiro dropped in for Barnard’s fifth annual Stationary Bike-A-Thon Thursday in LeFrak Gymnasium, Nora, as usual, attended. The pooch did not bark once, and did not object to staying on her leash while Shapiro peddled away. Obviously accustomed to attention from students, she let a reporter hold her and otherwise stayed put as Shapiro directed.
In an extended interview, Shapiro revealed that she names all her dogs after “spirited women in literature.” Nora’s namesake is Nora Charles, a character in the detective novel The Thin Man by Dashiell Hammett.
Shapiro said that Barnard is the place where Nora belongs. According to the president, Nora “is the one and only member of the K-9 unit of Barnard’s Security Operation.”
Shapiro added that Nora’s traits qualify her as the perfect token dog at a women’s liberal arts college. Her “strong sense of herself” makes Barnard, a school whose mission is to empower women, “the perfect home for her.”
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