From the Masters: Roger and Ann Porter
Dear Dunsterites,
We are delighted to welcome you to Dunster House for the 2009-20010 academic year. We are excited to welcome a new group of sophomores, as well as our returning juniors and seniors. Dunster is also home this year to nine new resident tutors. Both the new and returning Resident tutors are great and we encourage you to take every opportunity to get to know them. We know that they are looking forward to getting to know you.
Many of you have written and called since the spring term ended to let us know how things were going. We are delighted that the summer break has proven both relaxing and productive. We are eager to see you all and to hear about your summers.
In the fall of 1942, as the Second World War intensified, the Principal of Somerville College, Oxford began her remarks to the returning students with an encouraging and appropriate thought: "All new beginnings are hopeful."
We have good reason to be hopeful at the beginning of this academic year. On the horizon is your first entryway meeting, a mandatory event in which you meet your neighbors and absorb the ground rules of house life. Ask your entryway tutor for the time and place. On Monday, September 7th, we will have a House-wide cookout in the courtyard. Keep an eye out for information about Master's open houses, ice cream bashes, wonderful HoCo events, meals with Faculty members in the SDR, concerts in the Library, Faculty dinners and other House events.
As the year gets underway, we hope you will let us know how you are settling in, any ideas you may have that will contribute to life at Dunster, the classes you are or will be taking and the activities and events you are involved in outside of the classroom. We look forward to seeing and hearing from you!
Warmest regards,
Roger and Ann Porter
FROM THE ALLSTON BURR RESIDENT DEAN:
CARLOS E. DIAZ ROSILLO
Welcome to D-House! I’m excited and honored to be your Resident Dean. As the Allston Burr Resident Dean of Dunster House, I am responsible for your academic and overall wellbeing and success. I also teach in the Department of Government, where I focus on the study of presidential power in the United States. Over the course of the year, I hope to be able to help you think through and manage the various challenges and opportunities that may impact your happiness and success at the College. I look forward to getting to know you well and to many great conversations.
I am available for much of the week in both formal and informal settings, in my office (J-39) and around the House at meals and various functions. Office hours are really good times to get to know you and to have good, productive conversations. I have both open hours as well as sign-up hours (posted on the bulletin board outside the House office, on the third floor of J entry-way). You will be informed about those on a week to week basis here in the Mooseletter.
I will begin regular office hours the week of Monday, September 7th --keep an eye out for the times. If you need to talk to me before then, please e-mail me at dn-abrd@fas.harvard.edu and I’d be happy to meet with you.
I look forward to meeting you soon!
Community Life
While this is a time of joyous reunion and camaraderie, it is still a communal environment and rules about parties/noise/drinking will be enforced. Please be advised that NO parties are to be held and NO party forms will be approved until all entryway meetings have taken place. After then, parties must be signed off on by your entryway tutor at least 48 hours in advance of they party. These forms must then be brought to the Resident Dean’s Office for final approval and registration. These forms are available outside the House Office. Parties may only go until 11 pm during the week and 1 or 2am on the weekend. The rules about hosting and underage drinking (under 21) still apply, so please behave accordingly. You are expected to keep noise in the halls to a minimum (parties must be held in a suite) and to clean up any trash that accumulates as a result. Tutors will enforce these rules, and if you have any questions, please ask them.
Smoking is absolutely banned within the private and public areas of the House. If you are going to smoke, you must go on to Cowperthwaite Street, beyond the bike courtyard, to do so. This means NO smoking is allowed within student suites, public areas (JCR, Small Dining Room, etc.) or in any of Dunster’s courtyards. Students who are found to continually violate this rule will be subject to disciplinary action.
Tutor On-Call: A different entry-way tutor will be on call each week for help with emergencies that may arise during the weekend. Their names and contact info will be posted in the Mooseletter, on the Dunster website, on the board outside the Superintendent’s office in G-entry, and by the dining Hall in J entry-way. I (Carlos) will be on-call for the week of September 1 and can be reached at 493-2326.
Important Dates:
Tuesday, September 1 – Last day to register on campus. Consult the Registrar’s website
Wednesday, September 2 -CLASSES BEGIN!
Thursday, September 3 – Sophomore dinner
Saturday, September 5 – Sophomore outing
Monday, September 7 – Labor Day, Offices closed
Thursday, September 10 - Study Cards Due by 5pm, Small Dining Room
Friday, September 11 – Last day undergraduates may cancel their registration for the fall term without payment of tuition. Last day undergraduates may submit cross-registration petitions (note that some schools have earlier deadlines.) Last day undergrads may register late for the fall term.
Friday, September 18 – Final applications for November 2009 degree candidates due.
House Office News
Brandon Edwards is Dunster's interim House Administrator. His hours will be posted on the door of J-38. He is happy to help with housing assignments and particular problems that may arise with regard to housing and general non-academic House business. Stop by and say hello.
Hi Dunsterites! My name is Melanie Ester (formerly Charette but still the same person!) and I am the assistant to the Resident Dean. Please feel free to stop by J-35 and visit me. I help with academic issues in the house. If you need a form, to schedule an appointment with the Dean or anything else related to academics, be sure to come and see me or shoot me an email.
If you’re looking for help in one office, don’t hesitate to check in with the other if the person you’re seeking isn't there. We are all available to help in any way we can.
House News
SOPHOMORE DINNER
All Sophomores, intercollegiate transfers, and tutors are invited to attend the Sophomore Dinner on Monday, September 15 starting at 6:00 pm in the Dining Hall. Please RSVP to Nora Dahl, ndahl@fas, by Wednesday September 10. If you would like a vegetarian meal just request it with your RSVP.
Use of common room space must be reserved in advance at http://dunster.harvard.edu/scheduler. You can also access the scheduler through the main Dunster web page by clicking on Moosetime. Save yourselves some aggravation and plan early.
Need computer help? Contact the Student Help Desk at 617-495-9000 or help@fas, or stop by the Science Center basement
From The Building Manager’s office
It is strongly advised that you consult with the Harvard Student Handbook or the House Superintendent prior to decorating your suite. This is especially important if you are considering any construction within your suite.
Guidelines for postering and other wall decorations are quite specific. To avoid substantial charges and fines it is strongly advised that you follow these guidelines
The only furniture you may remove from your suite is your bed. All other college furnishings must remain in your room.
Beds can be brought to the basement of A-entry. Please keep in mind that beds must be returned to to your room before you vacate your room in the spring.
Do not leave anything outside your room. Custodians are instructed to keep all hallways clear of debris and other obstructions.
Keep your doors locked at all times. Thieves commonly exploit these move-in times to steal.
As a reminder, please use bulletin boards located in the entry ways for posting/notices. Please refrain from using hallways, walls or doors.
The Sprinklers
Each and every room, closet and hallway has been appointed with new sprinkler heads. When the temperature reaches 155 degrees, the sprinkler head breaks causing water to Flow at about 30-40 gallons per minute. The average response time for the Cambridge Fire Department is 8-10 minutes which translates to between 300 to 400 gallons of water at any location.
If a resident, through horseplay or negligence or even accidentally sets off a sprinkler head, the college takes the position that the individual causing the water damage will be held financially responsible for any damage to the building and the personal property of others.
Residents should be especially mindful of the above when engaging in any activities that might result in activating this system. It isn’t just about water, its about a LOT of water in a very short period. This system was designed and put in place to keep you safe. Like any other source of power, it must be treated with respect.
Under no circumstances may anything be attached, hung from or propped against a sprinkler head; water damage is a serious problem not only to personal property but it most certainly result in students being displaced from their rooms.
All residents should check their respective insurance policies to insure that adequate insurance coverage is in place should any personal property be damaged as a result of these devices be activated. In most cases, damage to personal property is not covered by the College.
Pull Stations
The new pull stations installed throughout the House have been equipped with protective covers to avoid accidental operation of the system. These covers (when lifted) will also emit a clearly audible alarm that will be heard by occupants. This primary alarm is local and will not initiate a response from the Fire Department.
Please take special note that activating pull stations as a prank is not only irresponsible, it is AGAINST THE LAW. In addition to the penalties provided in the Harvard Handbook for Students, perpetrators of this type of crime may face action from agencies outside the College
New Fire Alarms
The new fire alarm system has both smoke detectors and strobe alarms in every room of Dunster House. The new system is more sensitive and provides greater range of coverage throughout the House. Smoking, candles, incense or the burning of food or popcorn will set off the local alarms. Any smoke in the hallways or entries sound the alarm at the Fire Department.
New Fire Extinguishers
These have been upgraded too! In the same locations as before, this ABC type of fire extinguisher is designed to address fires from wood and paper, as well as fire from liquid and electrical sources as well. Though smaller than those we’ve had in the past they will discharge for a longer period.
Residents should also note that when these extinguishers are discharged for any reason, they will most often foul the smoke detectors. As such, the Cambridge Fire Department will insist that all detecting devices must be cleared before residents can return to their rooms.
Please be aware that all of the fire doors in Dunster are now equipped with sound alarms. All of the fire alarm doors will be labeled and should not be opened. However, if students are living together across fire doors than those doors can be opened. In order to open a fire door in this case the students should come to the Building Manager's Office to request that the fire doors be opened and the sound alarm be deactivated. If a fire door is opened accidentally at night then students should come to the Building Manager's Office to request that the security guard on call deactivate the sound alarm.
Tutor News
Aaron Byrd
Hello Dunster! My name is Aaron Byrd and I am the Religion Tutor in Dunster House. I also serve as a Co-Coordinator for Intramurals (I look forward to seeing you out on the courts and fields!) and a Pre-Career Tutor (I look forward to assisting you with resumes and interviews!). As an undergraduate at Harvard, and in fair Dunster House, I was a Government concentrator but also spent time in the fields of Religious Studies, Economics and Applied Mathematics (and spent time as a concentrator in each! I too had a tough time deciding on a concentration!). After graduating in 2005, I worked for three years in the Investment Banking Group of Merrill Lynch, both in New York and Houston. While tutoring, I will be working towards a Masters of Divinity at the Divinity School.
Grace Byrd
Hello Dunster! My name is Grace Byrd and I am the Public Service Tutor in Dunster House. For the last three years I have worked for various non-profit organizations, in both New York and Houston. I am currently working with the AmeriCorps Youth Advocacy Project in Roxbury. I love to talk to anyone interested in getting involved in public service! In addition to assisting with various Public Service panels/community service events in the House, you can also find me cooking with the world-renowned Dunster House Culinary Team (if you like to cook we would love to have you join our ranks!) I can't wait to get to know each of you and look forward to our year(s) together. Aaron and I will be living in G-11, you are welcome anytime!
Lucy Colwell
Hi Dunster! I’m your resident tutor in physics, math and applied math, and I’m really excited about helping you with all those tricky calculus questions! I grew up in London, UK and completed my degree and masters in mathematics at Trinity College, Cambridge. Trinity has porters (typically somewhat grumpy ex army officers - excellent at shutting down parties) instead of resident tutors, so the Harvard system is quite novel for me. I’ve found living in the US a fascinating experience so far, and I’d love to ask you all about the places where you have lived. This will be my fifth year as a PhD candidate in the applied math program here at Harvard. My research applies maths and physics ideas to problems in biology. I also love skiing and hiking, and generally exploring the territory around Boston. I look forward to meeting and getting to know all of you over dinner. Feel free to email me if you have questions about any of your science courses, or about starting research in the sciences.
Geniece Crawford
Hello one and all! I am Geniece Crawford and I am excited to join Dunster as the tutor in sociology and race relations. I was raised in Queens, New York and completed my bachelor degree in sociology at SUNY Binghamton before beginning the doctoral program in sociology at Harvard in 2005. My broad interests in sociology include, but are not limited to, crime, religion, education, race relations and social interaction. In addition to my academic interests, I enjoy mentoring, liturgical dance and writing poetry and spoken word. While raised in New York, I was born in Jamaica, and therefore have a deep love and appreciation for reggae (not to be confused with dancehall) and Jamaican food. I hope to share my love of Jamaican culture and sociology with you, my fellow Dunsterites.
Caitlin Donovan
A 2006 graduate of Harvard College, I am very excited to be returning as a Resident Tutor in Dunster House. As a 2L at Harvard Law School, I am a Senior Editor on the Journal of Law & Public Policy and a board member of the Women's Law Association. Prior to law school, I worked as a research analyst at Goldman Sachs, focusing on the technology sector. Having interned at other large investment banks throughout college, I would love to help with any finance or business questions that you might have. I play the violin and enjoy all kinds of music, so let me know if you are interested in playing chamber music this year. A Latin concentrator as an undergrad, I am also available to answer any translation or Classics-related questions. I look forward to meeting you all!
Kathy Gerlach
Hi Dunster! This is my first year as a Res Tutor, and I can’t wait to meet all of you! A former Quadling, I graduated from Harvard in 2007 and returned last year to pursue PhD research on the cognitive neuroscience of memory. I grew up in southern Germany where I developed an undying love for opera, good bread, and quirky dialects. When I’m not doing research, I’m often to be found singing and am looking forward to using Dunster’s beautiful spaces for concerts that you’ll perform in (come talk to me if you’re looking to find people for an ensemble or would like to put together a concert!). I’m excited to have extensive discussions about brains, psychology, music, or life in general over meals, and to chat whenever you feel like stopping by H-51 (and yes, I always keep a stash of quality dark chocolate around).
Andrew Haffner
Hello Meese! My name is Andrew Haffner and I am thrilled to be a Dunster House Resident Pre-Law Tutor. I'm a 2L at Harvard Law School, focusing on corporate law, involved with the Harvard International Law Journal and the Federalist Society. However, my favorite Harvard memory is winning the Intramural Flag Football Championship last fall. I hail from the city of champions: the Super Bowl winning Pittsburgh Steelers, and the Stanley Cup winning Pittsburgh Penguins. Feel free to come visit me so we can extol the virtues of the two greatest sport franchises, or conversely, mock Pittsburgh's perennially horrible baseball team. I did my undergrad at Vanderbilt University, attracted by the warmer climate and a neat major: Human and Organizational Development, which I combined with Economics. While there, I joined BYX, a Christian fraternity, and managed to get my fifteen minutes of fame being on the graduation jumbotron and getting a pretty cool medal, the Founder’s Medal. I am passionate about foreign films like The 400 Blows, classic films like The Good the Bad and the Ugly, and the older television series "Arrested Development.” You're most likely to find me at Dunster studying, running, catching up on "Mad Men,” or organizing my extensive music collection.
Jacob Jost
Greetings. I’m excited to be returning to Dunster for my third year as English and Fellowships tutor. My favorite Dunster activities are animated conversations over a meal in our noble dining hall, evenings with a good book in our beautiful library, and working up a sweat on our plentiful squash courts. I hope to share all these activities and more with you in the year to come. If you’d like to talk about eighteenth-century British literature, fellowships, or anything else, swing by 10 Dewolfe 44 and say hello to Laura and me, or drop me a line at jjost@fas.harvard.edu.
Theresa Liang
Hey Moosees! My name is Theresa Liang and I will be the new chemistry tutor in Dunster House. I grew up in sunny California, spent my undergrad years at UC Berkeley (GO BEARS!), and am currently pursuing a PhD at Harvard in organic chemistry. I love good food and good books and if you’re interested would be delighted to offer suggestions on either. Please let me know if you have any restaurant or book suggestions for me! I’m very excited to get to meet y’all and be sure to let me know what I can do to help make your experience at Dunster fun and memorable. I know we’re gonna have a great year together =)
Tizzie Likovich
Hello Meese! I'm happy to be returning for a second year as a Resident Tutor. I’m originally from Colorado and I graduated from Harvard in 2007 with a BA in History. As an undergrad I lived in Currier House and was active in the Catholic Student Association and Delta Gamma. I rowed for two years with the Radcliffe Lights and studied abroad in both Barcelona and Venice. While moonlighting as a tutor, I work as an Analyst in Real Estate Finance. I'm excited to be a Pre-Business Tutor this year and look forward to reviewing resumes, prepping for interviews and having long conversations about your career and life goals. I live in F-14 with my husband Ed and our cat Lily; please come by and say hello!
Ed Likovich
I am excited for a new year in Dunster as a Resident Tutor in Physics and as the Sophomore Advising Coordinator. I graduated in the Dunster House Class of 2006 with a degree in Physics. I am now pursuing a
Ph.D. at Harvard in Applied Physics and will be entering my fourth year of study. My research interests lie at the intersection of physics, electrical engineering, and materials science. I expect to be holding weekly problem sessions in the dining hall, as well as being available for anyone who would like to discuss academic and career
planning in physics and engineering. Outside of school, I enjoy participating in IM sports, going to Harvard sporting events, playing the guitar, and participating in the Harvard Catholic Students Association. My wife, Elizabeth Likovich, and I live in F-14 with our cat, Lily.
Amanda Lobell & Neil Roach
We’re excited to be first-year tutors, and to be joining the Dunster community. Neil is a graduate student in the Human Evolutionary Biology department, studying anatomy—specifically, the evolution of human throwing. In the summers he often does fieldwork in Kenya, and is always excited to talk about anthropology, archaeology, and fossils. He also loves to read and chat about politics and is known to get competitive about tennis. Amanda got her Ph.D. in HEB in 2008 and is now a lecturer in the department. Her research is in the evolutionary genetics of humans and primates, and she teaches classes within this field in addition to the HEB sophomore tutorial. She also is very fond of cooking (especially desserts), reading mystery novels, and traveling whenever possible. Please come sit with us in the dining hall or drop by our place in DeWolfe to say hi—we’re looking forward to getting to know you all!
Vernie Oliveiro
I’m very excited to be starting my third year as a resident tutor in Dunster this year! I’m a Ph.D. candidate in the History Department, and my dissertation deals specifically with U.S. multinational enterprises in American foreign relations during the 1970. I’m from the small and tropical island city-state of Singapore, the size of which probably explains my love of travel.
Sabrina Sadique
Aloha Dunsterians/Dunsterites (both sound awkward – far too many syllables. Suggestions?)! I am a new Resident Tutor in I-12 and am fast approaching the dissertation writing trial as a sixth year PhD candidate in English (focus: Postcolonial Literary Theory… Modernism/Postmodernism… that sort of stuff; as long as the prefix “post-” blithely complicates an adjectival theme of ambiguity, I am there. Thesis focus: Gender [Trouble] in Post-9/11 texts. As you can tell, I also am a fan of encysted parentheses and yawn-long sentences). I came to the States from Bangladesh as a freshman in college nine years ago with the near-devout intent to synthesize molecules. Not clumsy ones with clumsy methods, but elegant structures that split themselves open to show quiet simplicity in tangled grandeur. Of course, life hiccupped in to reveal that orbital aesthetics wasn’t my allotment: I was meant to read. Read long books with zero conclusions and negative characters. Surely enough, as soon as I completed two-and-half years of Chemistry requirements in college, an unsparing bout of literary virus swung and lodged me deep into English Literature: I abandoned chemical poesy posthaste and soundly yielded to the necessary fever. I have been bifurcated since, and joyfully so (wouldn’t have it any other way). Moral of the story: if you think you know what you want and have it all prefixed, the change guerilla will fix you. The swerve from the Sciences to the Humanities has been both enabling and disabling in shocking ways: if you are commensurately bipolarized in your affection between the two nodes (Music or Physics? Math or Anthropology?) and fancy a fuller elucidation from my end to quit your pendulum-state, a chic, black (sweetly discounted) leather couch and a special cup of Darjeeling tea await you in I-12. Things I love (check if we match and holler on contact): bread, cheese, BerryLine, more BerryLine, (did I say more BerryLine?), cafes with a high coolness quotient (Trident, Petsi Pies, Darwin’s Ltd.), Nova: Science Now, independent films (Amores Perros, Donnie Darko, Being John Malkovich, you get the drift), time unlimited conversations, any text/query/debate on faith, doubt, ontology, literature, race, and gender. I will serve as your Race Relations advisor and hope to address any related concern you may have. Take me up on the open invite to seek me at all times for a chat, for advice, to vent, to co-caffeinate/co-froyo parched guts… unhesitatingly, wholeheartedly. I am looking forward to a tremendous year amid all you zesty Moose! Welcome.
Kelly Shue
Welcome back Dunster! This will be my second year as the economics tutor at Dunster House. I graduated from Harvard in 2006 with a degree in applied math and am now in my 4th year in the economics PhD program. I was born in China and have lived in New Jersey (a much underrated state), California, and Michigan. In my free time, I enjoy eating bizarre foods and reading hilarious novels. Other interests include yoga, massage, and the fabulous field of economics. Please come by my room, E52, and say hello.
Laura Sider Jost
Hello Dear Dunster. I am your anthropology tutor and also a writing tutor, so I can help you handle the likes of both dangling participles and Margaret Meads. Some things about me: I work in communications for an international public health nonprofit headquartered just down Memorial Drive in the old Polaroid building. I have an interdisciplinary master’s degree from the U of Penn, for which I studied communication, anthropology, urban studies, and political science. I dream of being a freelance multimedia journalist and running a settlement house a la Jane Addams’ Hull House. Go Moose, Go!
James Whitfield
Hi, I'm Jay, the new chemistry tutor and I'm looking forward to coming to Dunster House. I am from Prince Georges County in Maryland (only state to go by counties) and I spent three years at another university: Morehouse College. There I was a major in chemistry and mathematics. I look forward to sharing my knowledge with the students of Dunster. I graduated in 2006 and I've worked as a student in the Chemical Physics program in Alan Aspuru-Guzik's lab ever since. In my spare time, I like to play chess and squash. I hope to add to the culture and the vibrancy of house life at Dunster as well as provide my insights on academic success. I'm in G-21 if you ever need friendly advice. I hope you're as excited as I am about this upcoming year.
Albert Yeh
Greetings! I am very excited to serve the Dunster House community as a returning pre-med resident tutor. Having graduated from Quincy House in 2007, I’m now a 3rd year at HMS. Born in Taipei, Taiwan and raised in Dallas, I’ve also spent time teaching English in the cloud forests of Ecuador and lived in Beijing as a result of losing my passport (it didn’t help that I lied under oath in the US Embassy). I’m a big fan of Garry Kasparov, Bill Watterson, and Sir Arthur Conan Doyle—though I must say that what Mark Cuban has done for the Mavs has really drawn me into the NBA. Feel free to give me a holler if you’re ever in need of a running buddy or in the mood for a game of chess. Please drop by C-24 for a chat or just to say hello--I look forward to meeting all of you!
Deadline for Dunster House newsletter submissions is Thursday at 3:00 pm for Monday publication. Submit concise notices with a brief headline in writing to Melanie Ester, Assistant to the Resident Dean, either at the House Office (J-35), by fax at 496-3850, or preferably by e-mail at mester@fas.harvard.edu
The newsletter is also available on the Internet at http://dunster.harvard.edu/
