VIce-President-for-Manhattanville-Development

As the spring term begins, thousands of Columbia students have returned to campus. Despite facing economic challenges during the COVID-19 pandemic, many local galleries and art-related businesses continue to offer a diverse array of artistic experiences for Columbia students, ranging from exhibitions confronting the pressing issues of race and gender inequalities to craft and pottery workshops that provide an opportunity to step away from the screen and into the studio.

In front of an array of posters emblazoned with red and black slogans, the Columbia-Barnard Young Democratic Socialists of America mounted a rally in support of its tuition strike. The rally began with a press conference in front of University President Lee Bollinger’s 60 West Morningside Drive home and culminated in a march to the steps of Low Library.

A massive installation created from brown butcher paper weaves throughout the lobby of Barnard’s Milstein Center for Teaching and Learning. It encases three television screens featuring videos of six women of color sharing experiences of their “stuff” being taken away. Alongside the installation, archival materials, including photos and manuscripts, are displayed.

Over 2,700 students have signed a petition declaring a tuition strike until Columbia meets its demands to reallocate the University’s spending. The tuition strike petition calls for a 10 percent reduction in tuition fees, a 10 percent increase in financial aid, to defund Public Safety, and to stop the University’s expansion into West Harlem.

Kofi Boateng, the first executive director of the West Harlem Development Corporation, is leaving the organization, according to a statement released by the WHDC on Nov. 20. WHDC board member and treasurer Zead Ramadan will serve as the interim executive director while the board searches for a permanent one.

Content Warning: This episode of The Ear discusses sexual violence and rape.

Michael Rebell was growing frustrated. It was October, over 10 months after the trial had ended, and Judge William Smith still had not released a decision on the case. In the 50 years that Rebell had worked in education reform, he had never known a judge to take this long. His career had taught him that change often required patience, but that did not stop him from hoping that Smith’s decision would arrive sooner. The case he had presented, after all, was urgent: He believed democracy was on the line.