compromise

Just after Election Day, I saw room for optimism. Republicans had gained seats in the House, limiting the Democrats’ power to jam through partisan legislation. Many of the newly-elected Republican representatives were moderate ones from diverse backgrounds: Among them were two of the first three Korean American women ever elected to Congress. Donald Trump was defeated, and Joe Biden—a candidate running on a promise to restore the soul of the nation—won.

It seems the spirit of anti-compromise, after possessing Washington for the winter, has taken up spring residence here in Morningside. On Monday night, it was reported that the faculty of two undergraduate schools have taken the option of starting classes before Labor Day "off the table." Because of alleged problems with finding day care for faculty members' children before NYC public schools begin, the most sensible option for making the academic calendar palatable has been arbitrarily and unquestioningly ruled out. While Mark Hay did an excellent job pointing out the deficiencies of the options we have left, I can't help but be disturbed by the insincerity and intransigence that the faculty have shown with this decision. moreOne of the many issues I have with this decision is its unconvincing reasoning. Assuming the day care issue really were a compelling one, it would stand to reason that the faculty of other Columbia schools would not be able to teach before Labor Day either. This isn't the case. The Business School, Law School, and Teachers College all start before Labor Day. How is it that their faculty somehow manage to make it through the month of August and the first week of September without the aid of NYC public schools? Perhaps they could share their methods of coping with the faculty of CC and Barnard. Seeing that the "issue" really isn't one of prohibitively great weight, the refusal of the faculty to start before Labor Day indicates that they are simply unwilling to compromise. Apparently, they think it would be too much of a sacrifice on their part. In reality, the pre-Labor Day option wouldn't be a one-sided concession—we would like that extra week of summer vacation as much as the faculty, but we recognize that something must be sacrificed to find a solution. Nobody will be getting a better deal out of this proposal—both parties will benefit. I hope that the faculty will realize that their method of negotiating is as utterly unfair as that used to pass sweeping social legislation with one faction of a single political party. In real discussion, there is give and take—one party can't expect to get everything they want at the expense of the other. That week before Labor Day is a wonderful solution that solves the problem and spreads the inconvenience around. Here's hoping the faculty will put it "back on the table."