https://www.wikicu.com/api.php?action=feedcontributions&feedformat=atom&user=M3hrWikiCU - User contributions [en]2026-06-03T21:48:58ZUser contributionsMediaWiki 1.31.8https://www.wikicu.com/index.php?title=Christian_Zhang&diff=53872Christian Zhang2015-04-28T00:42:50Z<p>M3hr: </p>
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<div>Christian Zhang was city news editor for [[Spec]] in 2014. He is a very good and very prolific reporter. He also interned for the Daily News, like his predecessor [[Finn Vigeland]]. His twitter is very active and informative on local affairs.<br />
<br />
[[Category: Class of 2016]]<br />
[[Category: Physics majors]]<br />
[[Category: Economics majors]]</div>M3hrhttps://www.wikicu.com/index.php?title=Brian_Wu&diff=53870Brian Wu2015-04-28T00:41:06Z<p>M3hr: </p>
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<div>[[image:Brianwu.png|frame|right]]<br />
<br />
'''Brian Wu''' [[SEAS]] '[[2015|15]] is from Pleasanton, California and is a Computer Science major. Brian joined the Engineering Student Council his sophomore year when he was elected as the Preprofessional and Alumni Affairs Representative. In his junior year, he ran with the Executive Board party [[PSet 150]] and was elected as the Vice President of Finance. Brian is currently the SEAS Student Body President elect. <br />
<br />
==Student Council==<br />
Brian's work on the Finance Committee include the following initiatives:<br />
<br />
'''Completed Projects'''<br />
<br />
*Engineering Group Travel Fund<br />
**Brian worked with the Engineering Dean [[Mary Boyce]]'s Office to create $3,000 travel grants to regional and national conferences for SWE, SHPE, and EWB.<br />
*Joint Council Co-sponsorship Committee (Fall Session)<br />
**He co-chaired the JCCC committee to allocate over $12,000 to student groups in need of emergency or new programming funds.<br />
*Capital Investment Fund (Fall Session)<br />
**Brian worked with all four councils to allocate over $10,000 to student groups in order to make necessary capital investment purchases.<br />
<br />
'''Ongoing Projects'''<br />
<br />
*Engineering Project Grants<br />
**The finance committee created grants awarding up to $1,000 to student teams for building innovative and complex engineering projects of their choice.<br />
*Student Group Awards<br />
**Brian is working with Student Engagement and various other student government leaders to create a new award system for student groups.<br />
*Finance @ Columbia University<br />
**Brian is working with the four councils and six governing boards to determine the financial allocations for the upcoming academic year.<br />
*Joint Council Co-sponsorship Committee (Spring Session)<br />
**He is working with the four council treasurers to allocate remaining JCCC funds.<br />
*Capital Investment Fund (Spring Session)<br />
**Brian is working with the four councils to allocate the spring Capital Investment funds ($10,000).<br />
<br />
<br />
{{succession|preceded=[[Sidd Bhatt]]|succeeded=Incumbent|office=President of the ESC|years=2014-2015}}<br />
{{succession|preceded=[[Sidd Bhatt]]|succeeded=Incumbent|office=ESC Vice President of Finance|years=2013-2014}}<br />
<br />
[[Category:SEAS students|Wu]]<br />
[[Category:Computer science majors|Wu]]<br />
[[Category:Class of 2013|Wu]]<br />
[[Category:ESC|Wu]]</div>M3hrhttps://www.wikicu.com/index.php?title=Brian_Wu&diff=53868Brian Wu2015-04-28T00:40:42Z<p>M3hr: </p>
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<div>[[image:Brianwu.png|frame|right]]<br />
<br />
'''Brian Wu''' [[SEAS]] '[[2015|15]] is from Pleasanton, California and is a Computer Science major. Brian joined the Engineering Student Council his sophomore year when he was elected as the Preprofessional and Alumni Affairs Representative. In his junior year, he ran with the Executive Board party [[PSet 150]] and was elected as the Vice President of Finance. Brian is currently the SEAS Student Body President elect. <br />
<br />
==Student Council==<br />
Brian's work on the Finance Committee include the following initiatives:<br />
<br />
'''Completed Projects'''<br />
<br />
*Engineering Group Travel Fund<br />
**Brian worked with the Engineering Dean [[Mary Boyce]]'s Office to create $3,000 travel grants to regional and national conferences for SWE, SHPE, and EWB.<br />
*Joint Council Co-sponsorship Committee (Fall Session)<br />
**He co-chaired the JCCC committee to allocate over $12,000 to student groups in need of emergency or new programming funds.<br />
*Capital Investment Fund (Fall Session)<br />
**Brian worked with all four councils to allocate over $10,000 to student groups in order to make necessary capital investment purchases.<br />
<br />
'''Ongoing Projects'''<br />
<br />
*Engineering Project Grants<br />
**The finance committee created grants awarding up to $1,000 to student teams for building innovative and complex engineering projects of their choice.<br />
*Student Group Awards<br />
**Brian is working with Student Engagement and various other student government leaders to create a new award system for student groups.<br />
*Finance @ Columbia University<br />
**Brian is working with the four councils and six governing boards to determine the financial allocations for the upcoming academic year.<br />
*Joint Council Co-sponsorship Committee (Spring Session)<br />
**He is working with the four council treasurers to allocate remaining JCCC funds.<br />
*Capital Investment Fund (Spring Session)<br />
**Brian is working with the four councils to allocate the spring Capital Investment funds ($10,000).<br />
<br />
<br />
{{succession|preceded=[[Sidd Bhatt]]|succeeded=Incumbent|office=President of the ESC|years=2013-2014}}<br />
{{succession|preceded=[[Sidd Bhatt]]|succeeded=Incumbent|office=ESC Vice President of Finance|years=2013-2014}}<br />
<br />
[[Category:SEAS students|Wu]]<br />
[[Category:Computer science majors|Wu]]<br />
[[Category:Class of 2013|Wu]]<br />
[[Category:ESC|Wu]]</div>M3hrhttps://www.wikicu.com/index.php?title=Sidd_Bhatt&diff=53866Sidd Bhatt2015-04-28T00:40:18Z<p>M3hr: </p>
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<div>[[image:603213_724551467559094_990805087_n.jpg|frame|right]]<br />
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<span style="color:red">Did you mean: </span><span style="color:blue">'''''[[Sidd's Glasses]]'''''</span><br />
<br />
'''Siddhant (Sidd) Bhatt''' [[SEAS]] '[[2014|14]] was the 2014 president of the [[Engineering Student Council]]. He is studying [[IEOR|Operations Research]].<br />
<br />
In [[2013]], he was elected [[ESC]] president as part of the [[PSet 150]] party in the second consecutive uncontested election for that position. Sidd has also served as Vice-President of Finance, Vice-President of the SEAS Class of 2014, and Class Representative of the SEAS Class of 2013. He is a brother of [[Sigma Phi Epsilon]]. Sidd is well known for his [[Sidd's Glasses|iconic glasses]].<br />
<br />
During his tenure as VP of Finance, Sidd created the Travel and Capital Investment Funds through collaboration with then CCSC VP Finance [[Daphne Chen]]. Sidd also led the annual [[CU Assassins]] game hosted by ESC in 2013.<br />
<br />
As ESC President, Sidd and his team, along with members of CCSC, were instrumental in passing several policy initiatives that brought public Columbia Wi-Fi to the Law School Library, extended undergraduate access to Watson Library, and prevented the implementation of an unpopular policy in which commuter students were restricted access to Columbia residence halls. <br />
<br />
{{succession|preceded=[[Tim Qin]]|succeeded=[[Brian Wu]]|office=President of the ESC|years=2013-2014}}<br />
<br />
{{succession|preceded=[[Frank Yin]]|succeeded=[[Brian Wu]]|office=ESC Vice President of Finance|years=2012-2013}}<br />
<br />
[[Category:SEAS students|Bhatt]]<br />
[[Category:IEOR majors|Bhatt]]<br />
[[Category:Class of 2014|Bhatt]]<br />
[[Category:ESC presidents|Bhatt]]</div>M3hrhttps://www.wikicu.com/index.php?title=Sidd_Bhatt&diff=53859Sidd Bhatt2015-04-28T00:36:29Z<p>M3hr: </p>
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<div>[[image:603213_724551467559094_990805087_n.jpg|frame|right]]<br />
<br />
<span style="color:red">Did you mean: </span><span style="color:blue">'''''[[Sidd's Glasses]]'''''</span><br />
<br />
'''Siddhant (Sidd) Bhatt''' [[SEAS]] '[[2014|14]] was the 2014 president of the [[Engineering Student Council]]. He is studying [[IEOR|Operations Research]].<br />
<br />
In [[2013]], he was elected [[ESC]] president as part of the [[PSet 150]] party in the second consecutive uncontested election for that position. Sidd has also served as Vice-President of Finance, Vice-President of the SEAS Class of 2014, and Class Representative of the SEAS Class of 2013. He is a brother of [[Sigma Phi Epsilon]]. Sidd is well known for his [[Sidd's Glasses|iconic glasses]].<br />
<br />
During his tenure as VP of Finance, Sidd created the Travel and Capital Investment Funds through collaboration with then CCSC VP Finance [[Daphne Chen]]. Sidd also led the annual [[CU Assassins]] game hosted by ESC in 2013.<br />
<br />
As ESC President, Sidd and his team, along with members of CCSC, were instrumental in passing several policy initiatives that brought public Columbia Wi-Fi to the Law School Library, extended undergraduate access to Watson Library, and prevented the implementation of an unpopular policy in which commuter students were restricted access to Columbia residence halls. <br />
<br />
{{succession|preceded=[[Tim Qin]]|succeeded=Incumbent|office=President of the ESC|years=2013-2014}}<br />
<br />
{{succession|preceded=[[Frank Yin]]|succeeded=[[Brian Wu]]|office=ESC Vice President of Finance|years=2012-2013}}<br />
<br />
[[Category:SEAS students|Bhatt]]<br />
[[Category:IEOR majors|Bhatt]]<br />
[[Category:Class of 2014|Bhatt]]<br />
[[Category:ESC presidents|Bhatt]]</div>M3hrhttps://www.wikicu.com/index.php?title=WKCR&diff=53848WKCR2015-04-28T00:32:03Z<p>M3hr: </p>
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<div>'''WKCR''' is a radio station. WKCR's signal is on 89.9 FM, and it is also streamed online.<br />
<br />
It's run by Columbia students.<br />
<br />
Their call letters stand for [[King's Crown (symbol)|King's Crown]] Radio. It is notable compared to other college stations in that it is not free-form and that the content broadcasted would not be heard on a regular for-profit radio station or even a regular college station. That means no ads and no indie rock or hip-hop. Instead, WKCR maintains close ties to the avant-garde and jazz communities of New York. It has a strong following outside of the immediate Columbia community, especially among New York alumni.<br />
<br />
==Alumni==<br />
*[[Robert Siegel]] [[Columbia College|CC]] '[[1968|68]] - Host of [[NPR]]'s evening newsmagazine ''[[w:All Things Considered|All Things Considered]]'', anchored WKCR's coverage of the [[1968 Protests]]<br />
*[[Gary Cohen]] [[Columbia College|CC]] '[[1981|81]] - radio play-by-play announcer for the New York Mets from 1989-2005, presently television play-by-play announcer for the New York Mets <ref> [http://www.college.columbia.edu/cct_archive/jul_aug06/features2.php] </ref><br />
*[[George Stephanopoulos]] [[Columbia College|CC]] '[[1982|82]] - Bill Clinton's presidential adviser and now television news host, called soccer games for the station<br />
*[[Soterios Johnson]] [[Columbia College|CC]] ' [[1990|90]] - host of [[WNYC]]'s Morning Edition <ref> [http://www.college.columbia.edu/cct/jul_aug06/features2.php] </ref><br />
<br />
==See also==<br />
<br />
*[[WBAR]], Barnard's student radio station<br />
<br />
== External links ==<br />
* [http://www.wkcr.org/ WKCR website]<br />
<br />
[[Category:Student radio]]<br />
<br />
==References==<br />
<references/></div>M3hrhttps://www.wikicu.com/index.php?title=Varsity_Show&diff=53826Varsity Show2015-04-28T00:10:25Z<p>M3hr: </p>
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<div>{{Infobox club<br />
|Name=Varsity Show<br />
|Image=Vshow.jpg<br />
|Founded=[[1894]]<br />
|Recognition=[[ABC]]<br />
|Membership=22<br />
|Executive board=Director and 2 Producers<br />
|Allocation=Lots<br />
|Category=[[:Category:Performance_clubs|Performance]]}}<br />
{{wp-also}}<br />
The '''Varsity Show''', founded in [[1894]] as a fundraiser for the university's fledgling athletic teams, is one of the university's oldest traditions, and certainly its oldest performing arts tradition. Every year, the Varsity Show produces a unique full-length show that skews and satirizes many aspects of life at Columbia. And every year, students, administrators, and many more members of the Columbia community pack Roone Arledge Auditorium to engage in the century-old tradition of the Varsity Show.<br />
<br />
Ironically, many of the administrators being parodied and lambasted are often sitting in the front rows of the audience. No study has been conducted to determine whether these administrators realize there's a reason they're being ridiculed on stage.<br />
<br />
The VShow has been accused of nepotism. In [[2013]], for instance, the new creative team... strongly resembled... the previous one<ref>http://www.ivygateblog.com/2013/10/drama-drama-a-do-over-for-the-119th-annual-varsity-show/</ref>.<br />
<br />
The [[2006]]-[[2007]] show had an allocation of $14,500.00, though most of the show's revenue comes from ticket sales.<br />
<br />
Past directors and writers include such distinguished names as [[Oscar Hammerstein]], [[Lorenz Hart]], [[Richard Rodgers]], [[I. A. L. Diamond]], and [[Herman Wouk]].<br />
<br />
== Show Preparations ==<br />
<br />
In early October, the previous year's creative team interviews and auditions candidates to succeed them, and chooses a creative team of eight or nine students, filling the following roles: producer, director, writer, composer/lyricist, choreographer, and art director. The newly-minted creative team runs auditions for actors in late November/early December. The Varsity Show is notoriously the most selective casting process in Columbia theatre, and the results are always the result of much gossip and debate. Though the numbers vary from year to year, around 150 people audition for the show, singing a one-minute song selection, performing a scene with a random partner, and sometimes being asked to do improv comedy. From this group, around 25 people are asked to attend cast callbacks. An invitation to callbacks is automatically extended to performers from past Varsity Shows. Callbacks are typically held on a Saturday from 8am until 3pm. Those who have been called back perform a monologue of a "Columbia character," do improv within said character, and learn an original song and dance. From the performers that participate in callbacks, the creative team casts twelve to fifteen. The debates over casting notoriously span hours, and the new cast is welcomed into the Varsity family through a special ritual that's stuff of rumors and legend (although pictorial evidence shows that cream pies are somewhat involved). <br />
<br />
== West End Preview == <br />
<br />
Around mid-February, the Varsity Show team presents a cutting of some scenes and songs that have been written so far to the general public at Havana Central. This tradition dates back to before the West End bar was replaced by Havana Central, as the name suggests. For a nominal fee, the general public is encouraged to come preview the work that the Varsity Show team has produced. As of 2015, the West End Preview is performed on campus (at the Event Oval in the Diana).<br />
<br />
== Turkey Day ==<br />
<br />
Midway through March, alumni of past Varsity Show creative teams and casts are welcome to watch a full draft of the Varsity Show, and are then welcome to submit critiques for the purpose of creating the best show for the general public. The discussions and original draft of the show previewed at Turkey Day are highly confidential<ref>http://bwog.com/2013/05/04/varsity-show-review-missed-connections/#comment-1090923</ref>.<br />
<br />
== Days on Campus ==<br />
During Days on Campus, visiting prospective students get to watch portions of the newest Varsity Show as one of their activities. Notably in 2015, the administration objected to the content in the 2015 show and instead members of previous Varsity Shows were asked to perform older songs <ref>http://columbiaspectator.com/arts-and-entertainment/2015/04/13/varsity-show-performs-old-songs-days-campus-after-office</ref>.<br />
<br />
== Class Act == <br />
<br />
During NSOP, members of previous Varsity Shows are welcome to come back and perform a "cabaret" of past Varsity Show songs and skits for the incoming freshman class in Roone.<br />
<br />
== 2013-2014 Cast ==<br />
<br />
Actors:<br />
<br />
Sam Balzac, CC ’17<br />
Ellie Beckman, CC ’16<br />
Brittany Beljak, BC ’16<br />
Lacey Bookspan, BC ’17<br />
Michael Carter, CC ’14<br />
Alex Donnelly, CC ’14<br />
Lindsay Garber, BC ’16<br />
Emma Grueskin, BC ’17<br />
Kyle Marshall, CC ’17<br />
Brittany Searles, BC ’17<br />
Matt Soto, CC ’16<br />
Sean Walsh, CC ’14<br />
<br />
Creative Team:<br />
<br />
Director: Emily Feinstein, BC ’14 (Actor, V116)<br />
Producers: Allie Carieri, CC ’15 (Actor, V118); Ally Engelberg, BC ’15 (Producer, V119); Renée Kraiem, BC ’14 (Stage Manager, V119)<br />
Composer: Solomon Hoffman, CC ’14 (Composer, V118)<br />
Lyricist: Nick Parker, CC ’14 (Lyricist, V119)<br />
Writers: Rae Binstock, CC ’15; Eric Donahue, CC ’15 (Writer, V119)<br />
Choreographer: Lauren Wingenroth, BC ’15 (Assistant Choreographer, V119)<br />
Art Director: Jiin Choi, CC ’14 (Art Director, V119)<br />
<br />
== Trivia ==<br />
* The Varsity Show coined the term "[[PrezBo]]".<br />
* Sometimes called VShow or Veesh.<br />
* [[Songs|"Roar, Lion, Roar"]] is based on a Varsity Show melody.<br />
<br />
==See also==<br />
* [[Varsity Show performances]]<br />
* [http://www.thevarsityshow.com/about/ "Sing A Song of Morningside"] - A history of the Varsity Show<br />
* [https://exhibitions.cul.columbia.edu/exhibits/show/varsity-show The Varsity Show: A Columbia Tradition], University Archives Online Exhibit<br />
<br />
== External links ==<br />
* [http://www.thevarsityshow.com/ Varsity Show website]<br />
<br />
==References==<br />
<references/><br />
<br />
[[Category:Performance clubs]]<br />
[[Category:Traditions]]<br />
[[Category:Annual events]]<br />
[[Category:Varsity Show]]</div>M3hrhttps://www.wikicu.com/index.php?title=Endowment&diff=53815Endowment2015-04-28T00:04:19Z<p>M3hr: /* Size */</p>
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<div>Columbia's [[endowment]] is an approximately $9 billion portfolio of equities, commodities, fixed-income instruments, and cash equivalents. It is not a "slush fund" for spending, as it is mean primarily to serve as a long-term investment vehicle. On the other hand, it's not just a pile of money that serves no purpose but to grow each year either. It is managed by the [[Columbia Investment Management Company]].<br />
<br />
==Size==<br />
Columbia's endowment at the end of fiscal year 2014 came in at $9.2 billion. This ranks it the 11th largest university endowment in the United States (including the University of Texas and Texas A&M "systems" as single endowments each). Among its [[Ivy League]] peers, it used to rank behind only the obscenely rich Harvard, Princeton and Yale, but fell behind Penn in 2014 (probably because of the costs involving Manhattanville).<ref> For some historical context, see Roger Geiger's "To Advance Knowledge: The Growth of American Research Universities, 1900 - 1940", which includes comparative endowment data for Columbia any its peers from 1899-1939 on [http://books.google.com/books?id=y2SbOAWadz4C&lpg=PA276&pg=PA276#v=onepage&q&f=false pg. 276 et. seq.]</ref> Unlike many of its peers, especially Harvard and Yale, Columbia's endowment has recovered and surpassed its pre-[[w:Great Recession|Great Recession]] value of $7.147 billion, while Harvard and Yale remain 15-17% short of their values on June 30, 2008.<br />
<br />
===Relative to Peers===<br />
<br />
As you can see, while Columbia has a sizable endowment in absolute terms, and one significantly larger than a number of its peers (e.g. Brown, Dartmouth), when considered on a per enrolled student basis, its clear that the Ivy League breaks down into three tiers - the implausibly rich (Harvard, Princeton, and Yale); Dartmouth; and then the 'poor' ivies (Columbia, Cornell, Brown, and Penn). This is an important context to keep in mind when measuring Columbia's efforts against the competition.<br />
<br />
{| class="wikitable sortable"<br />
! Institution <br />
! 2012 Endowment<br>([[w:1000000000 (number)|billion]] [[USD]])<br />
! 2012 Endowment per student <br>([[w:100000 (number)|hundreds of thousands]] [[USD]])<br />
|-<br />
|[[Harvard]]<br />
|$30.435<br />
|$1,445<br />
|-<br />
|[[Princeton]]<br />
|$16.954<br />
|$2,098<br />
|-<br />
|[[Yale]]<br />
|$19.345<br />
|$1,624<br />
|-<br />
|'''[[Columbia]]'''<br />
|'''$7.654'''<br />
|'''$265'''<br />
|-<br />
|[[Cornell]]<br />
|$4.947<br />
|$221<br />
|-<br />
|[[University of Pennsylvania|Penn]]<br />
|$6.755<br />
|$273<br />
|-<br />
|[[Brown]]<br />
|$2.460<br />
|$291<br />
|-<br />
|[[Dartmouth]]<br />
|$3.486<br />
|$567<br />
|-<br />
|[[Stanford]]<br />
|$17.036<br />
|$935<br />
|-<br />
|[[MIT]]<br />
|$10.150<br />
|$907<br />
|-<br />
|[[Duke]]<br />
|$5.555<br />
|$381<br />
|-<br />
|[[Amherst]]<br />
|$1.641<br />
|$903<br />
|-<br />
|[[Williams]]<br />
|$1.799<br />
|$854<br />
|-<br />
|[[Swarthmore]]<br />
|$1.499<br />
|$970<br />
|}<br />
<br />
==Structure==<br />
As of 2004, Columbia's endowment was diversified among approximately 4,000 equity and commodity securities, and unknown fixed-income positions.<br />
<br />
==Spending rule==<br />
With various conditions, the [[Trustees]] aim to spend approximately 5% of the endowment per year to fund the university [[budget]]. Indeed, approximately $200-$300 million of the university's $2 billion [[budget]] comes from endowment spending. This is not just a round number, but actually a legal requirement for a non-profit which maintains significant investments to keep its non-profit status.<br />
<br />
==Performance==<br />
Columbia's endowment has performed well for its approximately 20 years of existence (prior to the sale of [[Rockefeller Center]] in 1985, Columbia's endowment in securites and investments was insignificant). It has averaged an approximately 16.5% compound annual growth rate (CAGR), which outpaces the S&P 500 index by a respectable margin, and is on par with other alternative investment concerns. It should be noted, however, that Columbia's endowment is exempt from both corporate and capital gains taxes, and does not face unpredictable principal volatility, as the the 5% spending rule is more or less fixed.<br />
<br />
==Socially Responsible Investing==<br />
Columbia's investments are subject to review by the [[Advisory Committee on Socially Responsible Investing]] (ACSRI), which does what its name implies. ACSRI, composed of students, faculty, and administrators, makes only recommendations; the [[Trustees]] make the final decision in all cases.<br />
<br />
ACSRI did not yet exist when Columbia made its most famous divestment, from apartheid South Africa in the 1980s, after an extended political battle and the occupation of Hamilton Hall by pro-divestment students. ACSRI recommended divestment from Sudan in 2005, and this was carried through by the Trustees.<br />
<br />
Presently, the [[Columbia Coalition Against the War]] (CCAW) is spearheading an effort to have Columbia divest from companies that presently materially support or benefit from the war in Iraq. CCAW is targeting three companies in which Columbia is presently invested to the tune of around $1.5 million each: Raytheon, General Dynamics, and Lockheed Martin. CCAW's 12-page formal proposal notes:<br />
<br />
''Divestment by Columbia alone would not be sufficient to change corporate behavior, but it would be an immensely powerful symbolic act and, if imitated, might help provide a significant financial incentive for change. Moreover, Columbia has an ethical obligation to avoid complicity in the ongoing brutality associated with the occupation in Iraq.''<br />
<br />
Two members of CCAW wrote an op-ed for the [[Spectator]] entitled "[http://www.columbiaspectator.com/node/26730/print Columbia Has a Responsibility to Divest]".<br />
<br />
Such divestment will not have any financial effect. For example, take Boeing, which has a market capitalization of $76 billion as of 1Q 2007. If Columbia's endowment even remotely mirrors the SEC's definition of a "diversified investment company", then it can have no more than 5% of total assets in a single company. If 5% were completely invested in Boeing (unlikely, since, as mentioned, Columbia's portfolio contains over 4,000 different investments), then that would still represent approximately 0.395% of Boeing's market value. Columbia's holdings for the three companies in question are as follows (closing prices as of 19 September 2007): 0.0055% of Raytheon, 0.0045% of General Dynamics, and 0.0036% of Lockheed Martin.<br />
<br />
Moreover, it is highly debatable as to the depth of influence of an "immensely powerful symbolic act" as well as the plausibility that such an act would be imitated. It is widely accepted that most investment managers and institutional investors seek to maximize their net present value. Even if a enormous group of investors decided to divest their holdings, it would merely artificially and temporarily depress asset prices, making the lower valuation of the companies in question far more attractive to other investors as the fundamentals of the company such as their business model would not have changed. This is also attractive to the companies in question because low valuations would allow them to buy back their own stock at a discount and by extension, increase their return on equity (ROE).<br />
<br />
The only way to actually make divestment effective in the sense of financially crippling the company's ability to manufacture, market, and service arms is to somehow force every holder of stock connected with companies involved in supplying coalition forces in Iraq with war ''materiel'' to sell their holdings, which is impossible and absurd because, to begin with, for there to be a successful sale, there must be buyer for every seller.<br />
<br />
Finally, where activists do exist in the institutional financial management world, they usually concern themselves with issues of corporate governance and business decisions, such as executive compensation or the long-term financial benefit of a risky project. Very few corporate activists bother pursuing divestment policies purely on a socially responsible line of thought.<br />
<br />
==Hedge fund?==<br />
It is debatable on whether Columbia's endowment is actually a hedge fund in disguise (as Harvard's clearly is). However, it is known that they employ the services of a prime broker.<br />
<br />
The majority of Columbia's endowment is invested in (admitted, external) hedge funds. Less than $1 billion is invested in publicly traded stocks picked directly by Columbia's office of finance.<br />
<br />
This is hardly an ideal arrangement because hedge funds and other alternative investments usually charge a "2-and-20" expense ratio. That is, 20% of any gains in a given year, and 2% of principal, regardless of whether the fund makes a gain or books a loss. Therefore, by investing predominantly in hedge funds instead of formulating its own investment strategies, Columbia's endowment is surrendering a significant percentage of potential gains each year in management fees.<br />
<br />
Nor is Columbia's endowment size inappropriate for a hedge fund. Most hedge funds are run under the $10 billion mark. Nor can Columbia plausibly claim that it does not have a sizable pool of financially savvy associates to draw from. A possible explanation as to why Columbia chose not to create its own hedge fund strategy and instead surrender at least 2% of principal and 20% of gains each year is because of a desire to avoid the backlash that endowment manager Jack Meyer at Harvard created when it was revealed that Harvard paid him $35 million one year. Such a salary, while high, is hardly exorbitant by hedge fund standards, which is probably why Meyer left shortly thereafter to start his own hedge fund (where he gets paid in excess of $100 million per year). The fact that the Harvard endowment's compound annual growth rate outpaced Columbia by ''at least'' 2-3% per year was apparently not considered.<br />
<br />
===Fund of funds===<br />
An alternative to this view is to see Columbia's endowment as analogous to a fund of funds, a type of hedge fund specializing in investments in other hedge funds. Though the compounded management fees described in the previous paragraphs motivate criticism of this type of investment vehicle, they are not necessarily worse performing. Funds of funds, through careful evaluation of asset managers in their portfolio, can deliver high absolute returns with greater diversification and potentially much less variance. They do this at a much lower cost than would be required for a single hedge fund to invest as broadly. The typical mid-size equities fund, for example, invests in far fewer than 4,000 securities at any given time.<br />
<br />
While Columbia certainly has the resources to manage a hedge fund using its pool of financially savvy alumni, the university is apparently taking a more conservative investment approach. Though the best model for the institution is open to debate, one should be wary of judging any investment philosophy solely on the basis of past performance.<br />
<br />
== External links ==<br />
* [http://finance.columbia.edu/controller/resources/reports-33061-TheTrusteesofColumbiaUniversityintheCityofNewYork.pdf Columbia's 2006 financial report]<br />
<br />
==References==<br />
<references/><br />
<br />
[[Category:Endowment|*]]</div>M3hrhttps://www.wikicu.com/index.php?title=Endowment&diff=53810Endowment2015-04-27T23:59:29Z<p>M3hr: </p>
<hr />
<div>Columbia's [[endowment]] is an approximately $9 billion portfolio of equities, commodities, fixed-income instruments, and cash equivalents. It is not a "slush fund" for spending, as it is mean primarily to serve as a long-term investment vehicle. On the other hand, it's not just a pile of money that serves no purpose but to grow each year either. It is managed by the [[Columbia Investment Management Company]].<br />
<br />
==Size==<br />
Columbia's endowment at the end of fiscal year 2014 came in at $9.2 billion. This ranks it the 8th largest university endowment in the United States (including the University of Texas "system" as a single endowment). Among its [[Ivy League]] peers, it used to rank behind only the obscenely rich Harvard, Princeton and Yale, but fell behind Penn in 2014 (probably because of the costs involving Manhattanville).<ref> For some historical context, see Roger Geiger's "To Advance Knowledge: The Growth of American Research Universities, 1900 - 1940", which includes comparative endowment data for Columbia any its peers from 1899-1939 on [http://books.google.com/books?id=y2SbOAWadz4C&lpg=PA276&pg=PA276#v=onepage&q&f=false pg. 276 et. seq.]</ref> Unlike many of its peers, especially Harvard and Yale, Columbia's endowment has recovered and surpassed its pre-[[w:Great Recession|Great Recession]] value of $7.147 billion, while Harvard and Yale remain 15-17% short of their values on June 30, 2008.<br />
<br />
===Relative to Peers===<br />
<br />
As you can see, while Columbia has a sizable endowment in absolute terms, and one significantly larger than a number of its peers (e.g. Brown, Dartmouth), when considered on a per enrolled student basis, its clear that the Ivy League breaks down into three tiers - the implausibly rich (Harvard, Princeton, and Yale); Dartmouth; and then the 'poor' ivies (Columbia, Cornell, Brown, and Penn). This is an important context to keep in mind when measuring Columbia's efforts against the competition.<br />
<br />
{| class="wikitable sortable"<br />
! Institution <br />
! 2012 Endowment<br>([[w:1000000000 (number)|billion]] [[USD]])<br />
! 2012 Endowment per student <br>([[w:100000 (number)|hundreds of thousands]] [[USD]])<br />
|-<br />
|[[Harvard]]<br />
|$30.435<br />
|$1,445<br />
|-<br />
|[[Princeton]]<br />
|$16.954<br />
|$2,098<br />
|-<br />
|[[Yale]]<br />
|$19.345<br />
|$1,624<br />
|-<br />
|'''[[Columbia]]'''<br />
|'''$7.654'''<br />
|'''$265'''<br />
|-<br />
|[[Cornell]]<br />
|$4.947<br />
|$221<br />
|-<br />
|[[University of Pennsylvania|Penn]]<br />
|$6.755<br />
|$273<br />
|-<br />
|[[Brown]]<br />
|$2.460<br />
|$291<br />
|-<br />
|[[Dartmouth]]<br />
|$3.486<br />
|$567<br />
|-<br />
|[[Stanford]]<br />
|$17.036<br />
|$935<br />
|-<br />
|[[MIT]]<br />
|$10.150<br />
|$907<br />
|-<br />
|[[Duke]]<br />
|$5.555<br />
|$381<br />
|-<br />
|[[Amherst]]<br />
|$1.641<br />
|$903<br />
|-<br />
|[[Williams]]<br />
|$1.799<br />
|$854<br />
|-<br />
|[[Swarthmore]]<br />
|$1.499<br />
|$970<br />
|}<br />
<br />
==Structure==<br />
As of 2004, Columbia's endowment was diversified among approximately 4,000 equity and commodity securities, and unknown fixed-income positions.<br />
<br />
==Spending rule==<br />
With various conditions, the [[Trustees]] aim to spend approximately 5% of the endowment per year to fund the university [[budget]]. Indeed, approximately $200-$300 million of the university's $2 billion [[budget]] comes from endowment spending. This is not just a round number, but actually a legal requirement for a non-profit which maintains significant investments to keep its non-profit status.<br />
<br />
==Performance==<br />
Columbia's endowment has performed well for its approximately 20 years of existence (prior to the sale of [[Rockefeller Center]] in 1985, Columbia's endowment in securites and investments was insignificant). It has averaged an approximately 16.5% compound annual growth rate (CAGR), which outpaces the S&P 500 index by a respectable margin, and is on par with other alternative investment concerns. It should be noted, however, that Columbia's endowment is exempt from both corporate and capital gains taxes, and does not face unpredictable principal volatility, as the the 5% spending rule is more or less fixed.<br />
<br />
==Socially Responsible Investing==<br />
Columbia's investments are subject to review by the [[Advisory Committee on Socially Responsible Investing]] (ACSRI), which does what its name implies. ACSRI, composed of students, faculty, and administrators, makes only recommendations; the [[Trustees]] make the final decision in all cases.<br />
<br />
ACSRI did not yet exist when Columbia made its most famous divestment, from apartheid South Africa in the 1980s, after an extended political battle and the occupation of Hamilton Hall by pro-divestment students. ACSRI recommended divestment from Sudan in 2005, and this was carried through by the Trustees.<br />
<br />
Presently, the [[Columbia Coalition Against the War]] (CCAW) is spearheading an effort to have Columbia divest from companies that presently materially support or benefit from the war in Iraq. CCAW is targeting three companies in which Columbia is presently invested to the tune of around $1.5 million each: Raytheon, General Dynamics, and Lockheed Martin. CCAW's 12-page formal proposal notes:<br />
<br />
''Divestment by Columbia alone would not be sufficient to change corporate behavior, but it would be an immensely powerful symbolic act and, if imitated, might help provide a significant financial incentive for change. Moreover, Columbia has an ethical obligation to avoid complicity in the ongoing brutality associated with the occupation in Iraq.''<br />
<br />
Two members of CCAW wrote an op-ed for the [[Spectator]] entitled "[http://www.columbiaspectator.com/node/26730/print Columbia Has a Responsibility to Divest]".<br />
<br />
Such divestment will not have any financial effect. For example, take Boeing, which has a market capitalization of $76 billion as of 1Q 2007. If Columbia's endowment even remotely mirrors the SEC's definition of a "diversified investment company", then it can have no more than 5% of total assets in a single company. If 5% were completely invested in Boeing (unlikely, since, as mentioned, Columbia's portfolio contains over 4,000 different investments), then that would still represent approximately 0.395% of Boeing's market value. Columbia's holdings for the three companies in question are as follows (closing prices as of 19 September 2007): 0.0055% of Raytheon, 0.0045% of General Dynamics, and 0.0036% of Lockheed Martin.<br />
<br />
Moreover, it is highly debatable as to the depth of influence of an "immensely powerful symbolic act" as well as the plausibility that such an act would be imitated. It is widely accepted that most investment managers and institutional investors seek to maximize their net present value. Even if a enormous group of investors decided to divest their holdings, it would merely artificially and temporarily depress asset prices, making the lower valuation of the companies in question far more attractive to other investors as the fundamentals of the company such as their business model would not have changed. This is also attractive to the companies in question because low valuations would allow them to buy back their own stock at a discount and by extension, increase their return on equity (ROE).<br />
<br />
The only way to actually make divestment effective in the sense of financially crippling the company's ability to manufacture, market, and service arms is to somehow force every holder of stock connected with companies involved in supplying coalition forces in Iraq with war ''materiel'' to sell their holdings, which is impossible and absurd because, to begin with, for there to be a successful sale, there must be buyer for every seller.<br />
<br />
Finally, where activists do exist in the institutional financial management world, they usually concern themselves with issues of corporate governance and business decisions, such as executive compensation or the long-term financial benefit of a risky project. Very few corporate activists bother pursuing divestment policies purely on a socially responsible line of thought.<br />
<br />
==Hedge fund?==<br />
It is debatable on whether Columbia's endowment is actually a hedge fund in disguise (as Harvard's clearly is). However, it is known that they employ the services of a prime broker.<br />
<br />
The majority of Columbia's endowment is invested in (admitted, external) hedge funds. Less than $1 billion is invested in publicly traded stocks picked directly by Columbia's office of finance.<br />
<br />
This is hardly an ideal arrangement because hedge funds and other alternative investments usually charge a "2-and-20" expense ratio. That is, 20% of any gains in a given year, and 2% of principal, regardless of whether the fund makes a gain or books a loss. Therefore, by investing predominantly in hedge funds instead of formulating its own investment strategies, Columbia's endowment is surrendering a significant percentage of potential gains each year in management fees.<br />
<br />
Nor is Columbia's endowment size inappropriate for a hedge fund. Most hedge funds are run under the $10 billion mark. Nor can Columbia plausibly claim that it does not have a sizable pool of financially savvy associates to draw from. A possible explanation as to why Columbia chose not to create its own hedge fund strategy and instead surrender at least 2% of principal and 20% of gains each year is because of a desire to avoid the backlash that endowment manager Jack Meyer at Harvard created when it was revealed that Harvard paid him $35 million one year. Such a salary, while high, is hardly exorbitant by hedge fund standards, which is probably why Meyer left shortly thereafter to start his own hedge fund (where he gets paid in excess of $100 million per year). The fact that the Harvard endowment's compound annual growth rate outpaced Columbia by ''at least'' 2-3% per year was apparently not considered.<br />
<br />
===Fund of funds===<br />
An alternative to this view is to see Columbia's endowment as analogous to a fund of funds, a type of hedge fund specializing in investments in other hedge funds. Though the compounded management fees described in the previous paragraphs motivate criticism of this type of investment vehicle, they are not necessarily worse performing. Funds of funds, through careful evaluation of asset managers in their portfolio, can deliver high absolute returns with greater diversification and potentially much less variance. They do this at a much lower cost than would be required for a single hedge fund to invest as broadly. The typical mid-size equities fund, for example, invests in far fewer than 4,000 securities at any given time.<br />
<br />
While Columbia certainly has the resources to manage a hedge fund using its pool of financially savvy alumni, the university is apparently taking a more conservative investment approach. Though the best model for the institution is open to debate, one should be wary of judging any investment philosophy solely on the basis of past performance.<br />
<br />
== External links ==<br />
* [http://finance.columbia.edu/controller/resources/reports-33061-TheTrusteesofColumbiaUniversityintheCityofNewYork.pdf Columbia's 2006 financial report]<br />
<br />
==References==<br />
<references/><br />
<br />
[[Category:Endowment|*]]</div>M3hrhttps://www.wikicu.com/index.php?title=Endowment&diff=53808Endowment2015-04-27T23:58:16Z<p>M3hr: /* Size */</p>
<hr />
<div>Columbia's [[endowment]] is an approximately $8 billion portfolio of equities, commodities, fixed-income instruments, and cash equivalents. It is not a "slush fund" for spending, as it is mean primarily to serve as a long-term investment vehicle. On the other hand, it's not just a pile of money that serves no purpose but to grow each year either. It is managed by the [[Columbia Investment Management Company]].<br />
<br />
==Size==<br />
Columbia's endowment at the end of fiscal year 2014 came in at $9.2 billion. This ranks it the 8th largest university endowment in the United States (including the University of Texas "system" as a single endowment). Among its [[Ivy League]] peers, it used to rank behind only the obscenely rich Harvard, Princeton and Yale, but fell behind Penn in 2014 (probably because of the costs involving Manhattanville).<ref> For some historical context, see Roger Geiger's "To Advance Knowledge: The Growth of American Research Universities, 1900 - 1940", which includes comparative endowment data for Columbia any its peers from 1899-1939 on [http://books.google.com/books?id=y2SbOAWadz4C&lpg=PA276&pg=PA276#v=onepage&q&f=false pg. 276 et. seq.]</ref> Unlike many of its peers, especially Harvard and Yale, Columbia's endowment has recovered and surpassed its pre-[[w:Great Recession|Great Recession]] value of $7.147 billion, while Harvard and Yale remain 15-17% short of their values on June 30, 2008.<br />
<br />
===Relative to Peers===<br />
<br />
As you can see, while Columbia has a sizable endowment in absolute terms, and one significantly larger than a number of its peers (e.g. Brown, Dartmouth), when considered on a per enrolled student basis, its clear that the Ivy League breaks down into three tiers - the implausibly rich (Harvard, Princeton, and Yale); Dartmouth; and then the 'poor' ivies (Columbia, Cornell, Brown, and Penn). This is an important context to keep in mind when measuring Columbia's efforts against the competition.<br />
<br />
{| class="wikitable sortable"<br />
! Institution <br />
! 2012 Endowment<br>([[w:1000000000 (number)|billion]] [[USD]])<br />
! 2012 Endowment per student <br>([[w:100000 (number)|hundreds of thousands]] [[USD]])<br />
|-<br />
|[[Harvard]]<br />
|$30.435<br />
|$1,445<br />
|-<br />
|[[Princeton]]<br />
|$16.954<br />
|$2,098<br />
|-<br />
|[[Yale]]<br />
|$19.345<br />
|$1,624<br />
|-<br />
|'''[[Columbia]]'''<br />
|'''$7.654'''<br />
|'''$265'''<br />
|-<br />
|[[Cornell]]<br />
|$4.947<br />
|$221<br />
|-<br />
|[[University of Pennsylvania|Penn]]<br />
|$6.755<br />
|$273<br />
|-<br />
|[[Brown]]<br />
|$2.460<br />
|$291<br />
|-<br />
|[[Dartmouth]]<br />
|$3.486<br />
|$567<br />
|-<br />
|[[Stanford]]<br />
|$17.036<br />
|$935<br />
|-<br />
|[[MIT]]<br />
|$10.150<br />
|$907<br />
|-<br />
|[[Duke]]<br />
|$5.555<br />
|$381<br />
|-<br />
|[[Amherst]]<br />
|$1.641<br />
|$903<br />
|-<br />
|[[Williams]]<br />
|$1.799<br />
|$854<br />
|-<br />
|[[Swarthmore]]<br />
|$1.499<br />
|$970<br />
|}<br />
<br />
==Structure==<br />
As of 2004, Columbia's endowment was diversified among approximately 4,000 equity and commodity securities, and unknown fixed-income positions.<br />
<br />
==Spending rule==<br />
With various conditions, the [[Trustees]] aim to spend approximately 5% of the endowment per year to fund the university [[budget]]. Indeed, approximately $200-$300 million of the university's $2 billion [[budget]] comes from endowment spending. This is not just a round number, but actually a legal requirement for a non-profit which maintains significant investments to keep its non-profit status.<br />
<br />
==Performance==<br />
Columbia's endowment has performed well for its approximately 20 years of existence (prior to the sale of [[Rockefeller Center]] in 1985, Columbia's endowment in securites and investments was insignificant). It has averaged an approximately 16.5% compound annual growth rate (CAGR), which outpaces the S&P 500 index by a respectable margin, and is on par with other alternative investment concerns. It should be noted, however, that Columbia's endowment is exempt from both corporate and capital gains taxes, and does not face unpredictable principal volatility, as the the 5% spending rule is more or less fixed.<br />
<br />
==Socially Responsible Investing==<br />
Columbia's investments are subject to review by the [[Advisory Committee on Socially Responsible Investing]] (ACSRI), which does what its name implies. ACSRI, composed of students, faculty, and administrators, makes only recommendations; the [[Trustees]] make the final decision in all cases.<br />
<br />
ACSRI did not yet exist when Columbia made its most famous divestment, from apartheid South Africa in the 1980s, after an extended political battle and the occupation of Hamilton Hall by pro-divestment students. ACSRI recommended divestment from Sudan in 2005, and this was carried through by the Trustees.<br />
<br />
Presently, the [[Columbia Coalition Against the War]] (CCAW) is spearheading an effort to have Columbia divest from companies that presently materially support or benefit from the war in Iraq. CCAW is targeting three companies in which Columbia is presently invested to the tune of around $1.5 million each: Raytheon, General Dynamics, and Lockheed Martin. CCAW's 12-page formal proposal notes:<br />
<br />
''Divestment by Columbia alone would not be sufficient to change corporate behavior, but it would be an immensely powerful symbolic act and, if imitated, might help provide a significant financial incentive for change. Moreover, Columbia has an ethical obligation to avoid complicity in the ongoing brutality associated with the occupation in Iraq.''<br />
<br />
Two members of CCAW wrote an op-ed for the [[Spectator]] entitled "[http://www.columbiaspectator.com/node/26730/print Columbia Has a Responsibility to Divest]".<br />
<br />
Such divestment will not have any financial effect. For example, take Boeing, which has a market capitalization of $76 billion as of 1Q 2007. If Columbia's endowment even remotely mirrors the SEC's definition of a "diversified investment company", then it can have no more than 5% of total assets in a single company. If 5% were completely invested in Boeing (unlikely, since, as mentioned, Columbia's portfolio contains over 4,000 different investments), then that would still represent approximately 0.395% of Boeing's market value. Columbia's holdings for the three companies in question are as follows (closing prices as of 19 September 2007): 0.0055% of Raytheon, 0.0045% of General Dynamics, and 0.0036% of Lockheed Martin.<br />
<br />
Moreover, it is highly debatable as to the depth of influence of an "immensely powerful symbolic act" as well as the plausibility that such an act would be imitated. It is widely accepted that most investment managers and institutional investors seek to maximize their net present value. Even if a enormous group of investors decided to divest their holdings, it would merely artificially and temporarily depress asset prices, making the lower valuation of the companies in question far more attractive to other investors as the fundamentals of the company such as their business model would not have changed. This is also attractive to the companies in question because low valuations would allow them to buy back their own stock at a discount and by extension, increase their return on equity (ROE).<br />
<br />
The only way to actually make divestment effective in the sense of financially crippling the company's ability to manufacture, market, and service arms is to somehow force every holder of stock connected with companies involved in supplying coalition forces in Iraq with war ''materiel'' to sell their holdings, which is impossible and absurd because, to begin with, for there to be a successful sale, there must be buyer for every seller.<br />
<br />
Finally, where activists do exist in the institutional financial management world, they usually concern themselves with issues of corporate governance and business decisions, such as executive compensation or the long-term financial benefit of a risky project. Very few corporate activists bother pursuing divestment policies purely on a socially responsible line of thought.<br />
<br />
==Hedge fund?==<br />
It is debatable on whether Columbia's endowment is actually a hedge fund in disguise (as Harvard's clearly is). However, it is known that they employ the services of a prime broker.<br />
<br />
The majority of Columbia's endowment is invested in (admitted, external) hedge funds. Less than $1 billion is invested in publicly traded stocks picked directly by Columbia's office of finance.<br />
<br />
This is hardly an ideal arrangement because hedge funds and other alternative investments usually charge a "2-and-20" expense ratio. That is, 20% of any gains in a given year, and 2% of principal, regardless of whether the fund makes a gain or books a loss. Therefore, by investing predominantly in hedge funds instead of formulating its own investment strategies, Columbia's endowment is surrendering a significant percentage of potential gains each year in management fees.<br />
<br />
Nor is Columbia's endowment size inappropriate for a hedge fund. Most hedge funds are run under the $10 billion mark. Nor can Columbia plausibly claim that it does not have a sizable pool of financially savvy associates to draw from. A possible explanation as to why Columbia chose not to create its own hedge fund strategy and instead surrender at least 2% of principal and 20% of gains each year is because of a desire to avoid the backlash that endowment manager Jack Meyer at Harvard created when it was revealed that Harvard paid him $35 million one year. Such a salary, while high, is hardly exorbitant by hedge fund standards, which is probably why Meyer left shortly thereafter to start his own hedge fund (where he gets paid in excess of $100 million per year). The fact that the Harvard endowment's compound annual growth rate outpaced Columbia by ''at least'' 2-3% per year was apparently not considered.<br />
<br />
===Fund of funds===<br />
An alternative to this view is to see Columbia's endowment as analogous to a fund of funds, a type of hedge fund specializing in investments in other hedge funds. Though the compounded management fees described in the previous paragraphs motivate criticism of this type of investment vehicle, they are not necessarily worse performing. Funds of funds, through careful evaluation of asset managers in their portfolio, can deliver high absolute returns with greater diversification and potentially much less variance. They do this at a much lower cost than would be required for a single hedge fund to invest as broadly. The typical mid-size equities fund, for example, invests in far fewer than 4,000 securities at any given time.<br />
<br />
While Columbia certainly has the resources to manage a hedge fund using its pool of financially savvy alumni, the university is apparently taking a more conservative investment approach. Though the best model for the institution is open to debate, one should be wary of judging any investment philosophy solely on the basis of past performance.<br />
<br />
== External links ==<br />
* [http://finance.columbia.edu/controller/resources/reports-33061-TheTrusteesofColumbiaUniversityintheCityofNewYork.pdf Columbia's 2006 financial report]<br />
<br />
==References==<br />
<references/><br />
<br />
[[Category:Endowment|*]]</div>M3hrhttps://www.wikicu.com/index.php?title=Dining_Services&diff=53806Dining Services2015-04-27T23:57:50Z<p>M3hr: </p>
<hr />
<div>{{Infobox administration<br />
|Name=Dining Services<br />
|Location=118 [[Hartley Hall]] (Customer Service)<br />
|Phone=212-854-4076<br />
|Hours=M-F 9-5<br />
|Website=http://www.columbia.edu/cu/dining/<br />
|}}<br />
<br />
'''Dining Services''', sibling of [[Housing Services]]. They handle [[Dining locations]], and the [[meal plan]]. You can sign up for a Halal meal option at their office.<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
== Locations and hours ==<br />
<br />
{| border="1" cellpadding="3"<br />
|-<br />
|'''Location'''<br />
|width="50"|'''Mon'''<br />
|width="50"|'''Tues'''<br />
|width="50"|'''Wed'''<br />
|width="50"|'''Thurs'''<br />
|width="80"|'''Fri'''<br />
|width="80"|'''Sat'''<br />
|width="80"|'''Sun'''<br />
|-<br />
| [[Blue Java Butler]]<br />
|colspan="4"| 8am-12am<br />
| 8am-8pm || 12pm-6pm || 12pm-12am<br />
|-<br />
| [[Blue Java John Jay]]<br />
|colspan="4"| 7:30am-9:30am<br />
|colspan="3"| closed<br />
|-<br />
| [[Cafe 212]]<br />
|colspan="4"| 8am-2am<br />
| 8am-9pm || 9am-9pm || 9am-2am<br />
|-<br />
| [[Cafe East]]<br />
|colspan="5"| 11:30am-9:30pm<br />
| 12pm-6pm || 2pm-8pm<br />
|-<br />
| [[Carleton Lounge]]<br />
|colspan="5"| 8am-4pm<br />
|colspan="2"| closed<br />
|-<br />
| [[Ferris Booth Commons]]<br />
|colspan="6"| 8am-8pm<br />
|colspan="1"| closed<br />
|-<br />
| [[Hartley Kosher Deli]]<br />
|colspan="4"| 11am-3pm<br />
|colspan="3"| closed<br />
|-<br />
| [[Hewitt Dining Hall]]<br />
|colspan="5"| 8am-10am for breakfast, 11:30am-2pm for lunch, 5pm-7:45pm for dinner<br />
|colspan="2"| 11am-2pm for brunch, 4:30pm-7pm for dinner<br />
|-<br />
| [[JJ's Place]]<br />
|colspan="4"| 12pm-1am<br />
|colspan="2"| 12pm-8pm<br />
| 12pm-1am<br />
|-<br />
| [[John Jay Dining Hall]]<br />
|colspan="4"| 11am-2pm for brunch, and 5pm-8pm for dinner<br />
|colspan="2"| closed<br />
| Same as Monday-Thursday<br />
|-<br />
| [http://www.columbia.edu/cu/dining/docs/menus/index.html John Jay menu]<br />
| [http://www.dining.columbia.edu/docs/menus/index.html#Monday Mon]<br />
| [http://www.dining.columbia.edu/docs/menus/index.html#Tuesday Tues]<br />
| [http://www.dining.columbia.edu/docs/menus/index.html#Wednesday Wed]<br />
| [http://www.dining.columbia.edu/docs/menus/index.html#Thursday Thurs ]<br />
| [http://www.dining.columbia.edu/docs/menus/index.html#Friday Fri]<br />
| [http://www.dining.columbia.edu/docs/menus/index.html#Saturday Sat]<br />
| [http://www.dining.columbia.edu/docs/menus/index.html#Sunday Sun]<br />
|-<br />
| [[Lenfest Cafe]]<br />
|colspan="5"| 8:30am-4pm<br />
|colspan="2"| closed<br />
|-<br />
| [[Tasti D-Lite]]<br />
|colspan="4"| 12pm-11pm<br />
| 12pm-6pm<br />
| closed<br />
| 12pm-11pm<br />
|-<br />
| [[Uris Deli]]<br />
|colspan="3"| 7:30am-7pm<br />
|colspan="2"| 7:30am-5pm<br />
|colspan="2"| closed<br />
|}<br />
<br />
[[Category:Food and drink]]<br />
[[Category:Student Services]]</div>M3hrhttps://www.wikicu.com/index.php?title=Endowment&diff=53802Endowment2015-04-27T23:55:30Z<p>M3hr: /* Size */</p>
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<div>Columbia's [[endowment]] is an approximately $8 billion portfolio of equities, commodities, fixed-income instruments, and cash equivalents. It is not a "slush fund" for spending, as it is mean primarily to serve as a long-term investment vehicle. On the other hand, it's not just a pile of money that serves no purpose but to grow each year either. It is managed by the [[Columbia Investment Management Company]].<br />
<br />
==Size==<br />
Columbia's endowment at the end of fiscal year 2014, came in at $9.2 billion. This ranks it the 8th largest university endowment in the United States (including the University of Texas "system" as a single endowment). Among its [[Ivy League]] peers, it used to rank behind only the obscenely rich Harvard, Princeton and Yale, but fell behind Penn in 2014 (probably because of the costs involving Manhattanville).<ref> For some historical context, see Roger Geiger's "To Advance Knowledge: The Growth of American Research Universities, 1900 - 1940", which includes comparative endowment data for Columbia any its peers from 1899-1939 on [http://books.google.com/books?id=y2SbOAWadz4C&lpg=PA276&pg=PA276#v=onepage&q&f=false pg. 276 et. seq.]</ref> Unlike many of its peers, especially Harvard and Yale, Columbia's endowment has recovered and surpassed its pre-[[w:Great Recession|Great Recession]] value of $7.147 billion, while Harvard and Yale remain 15-17% short of their values on June 30, 2008.<br />
<br />
===Relative to Peers===<br />
<br />
As you can see, while Columbia has a sizable endowment in absolute terms, and one significantly larger than a number of its peers (e.g. Brown, Dartmouth), when considered on a per enrolled student basis, its clear that the Ivy League breaks down into three tiers - the implausibly rich (Harvard, Princeton, and Yale); Dartmouth; and then the 'poor' ivies (Columbia, Cornell, Brown, and Penn). This is an important context to keep in mind when measuring Columbia's efforts against the competition.<br />
<br />
{| class="wikitable sortable"<br />
! Institution <br />
! 2012 Endowment<br>([[w:1000000000 (number)|billion]] [[USD]])<br />
! 2012 Endowment per student <br>([[w:100000 (number)|hundreds of thousands]] [[USD]])<br />
|-<br />
|[[Harvard]]<br />
|$30.435<br />
|$1,445<br />
|-<br />
|[[Princeton]]<br />
|$16.954<br />
|$2,098<br />
|-<br />
|[[Yale]]<br />
|$19.345<br />
|$1,624<br />
|-<br />
|'''[[Columbia]]'''<br />
|'''$7.654'''<br />
|'''$265'''<br />
|-<br />
|[[Cornell]]<br />
|$4.947<br />
|$221<br />
|-<br />
|[[University of Pennsylvania|Penn]]<br />
|$6.755<br />
|$273<br />
|-<br />
|[[Brown]]<br />
|$2.460<br />
|$291<br />
|-<br />
|[[Dartmouth]]<br />
|$3.486<br />
|$567<br />
|-<br />
|[[Stanford]]<br />
|$17.036<br />
|$935<br />
|-<br />
|[[MIT]]<br />
|$10.150<br />
|$907<br />
|-<br />
|[[Duke]]<br />
|$5.555<br />
|$381<br />
|-<br />
|[[Amherst]]<br />
|$1.641<br />
|$903<br />
|-<br />
|[[Williams]]<br />
|$1.799<br />
|$854<br />
|-<br />
|[[Swarthmore]]<br />
|$1.499<br />
|$970<br />
|}<br />
<br />
==Structure==<br />
As of 2004, Columbia's endowment was diversified among approximately 4,000 equity and commodity securities, and unknown fixed-income positions.<br />
<br />
==Spending rule==<br />
With various conditions, the [[Trustees]] aim to spend approximately 5% of the endowment per year to fund the university [[budget]]. Indeed, approximately $200-$300 million of the university's $2 billion [[budget]] comes from endowment spending. This is not just a round number, but actually a legal requirement for a non-profit which maintains significant investments to keep its non-profit status.<br />
<br />
==Performance==<br />
Columbia's endowment has performed well for its approximately 20 years of existence (prior to the sale of [[Rockefeller Center]] in 1985, Columbia's endowment in securites and investments was insignificant). It has averaged an approximately 16.5% compound annual growth rate (CAGR), which outpaces the S&P 500 index by a respectable margin, and is on par with other alternative investment concerns. It should be noted, however, that Columbia's endowment is exempt from both corporate and capital gains taxes, and does not face unpredictable principal volatility, as the the 5% spending rule is more or less fixed.<br />
<br />
==Socially Responsible Investing==<br />
Columbia's investments are subject to review by the [[Advisory Committee on Socially Responsible Investing]] (ACSRI), which does what its name implies. ACSRI, composed of students, faculty, and administrators, makes only recommendations; the [[Trustees]] make the final decision in all cases.<br />
<br />
ACSRI did not yet exist when Columbia made its most famous divestment, from apartheid South Africa in the 1980s, after an extended political battle and the occupation of Hamilton Hall by pro-divestment students. ACSRI recommended divestment from Sudan in 2005, and this was carried through by the Trustees.<br />
<br />
Presently, the [[Columbia Coalition Against the War]] (CCAW) is spearheading an effort to have Columbia divest from companies that presently materially support or benefit from the war in Iraq. CCAW is targeting three companies in which Columbia is presently invested to the tune of around $1.5 million each: Raytheon, General Dynamics, and Lockheed Martin. CCAW's 12-page formal proposal notes:<br />
<br />
''Divestment by Columbia alone would not be sufficient to change corporate behavior, but it would be an immensely powerful symbolic act and, if imitated, might help provide a significant financial incentive for change. Moreover, Columbia has an ethical obligation to avoid complicity in the ongoing brutality associated with the occupation in Iraq.''<br />
<br />
Two members of CCAW wrote an op-ed for the [[Spectator]] entitled "[http://www.columbiaspectator.com/node/26730/print Columbia Has a Responsibility to Divest]".<br />
<br />
Such divestment will not have any financial effect. For example, take Boeing, which has a market capitalization of $76 billion as of 1Q 2007. If Columbia's endowment even remotely mirrors the SEC's definition of a "diversified investment company", then it can have no more than 5% of total assets in a single company. If 5% were completely invested in Boeing (unlikely, since, as mentioned, Columbia's portfolio contains over 4,000 different investments), then that would still represent approximately 0.395% of Boeing's market value. Columbia's holdings for the three companies in question are as follows (closing prices as of 19 September 2007): 0.0055% of Raytheon, 0.0045% of General Dynamics, and 0.0036% of Lockheed Martin.<br />
<br />
Moreover, it is highly debatable as to the depth of influence of an "immensely powerful symbolic act" as well as the plausibility that such an act would be imitated. It is widely accepted that most investment managers and institutional investors seek to maximize their net present value. Even if a enormous group of investors decided to divest their holdings, it would merely artificially and temporarily depress asset prices, making the lower valuation of the companies in question far more attractive to other investors as the fundamentals of the company such as their business model would not have changed. This is also attractive to the companies in question because low valuations would allow them to buy back their own stock at a discount and by extension, increase their return on equity (ROE).<br />
<br />
The only way to actually make divestment effective in the sense of financially crippling the company's ability to manufacture, market, and service arms is to somehow force every holder of stock connected with companies involved in supplying coalition forces in Iraq with war ''materiel'' to sell their holdings, which is impossible and absurd because, to begin with, for there to be a successful sale, there must be buyer for every seller.<br />
<br />
Finally, where activists do exist in the institutional financial management world, they usually concern themselves with issues of corporate governance and business decisions, such as executive compensation or the long-term financial benefit of a risky project. Very few corporate activists bother pursuing divestment policies purely on a socially responsible line of thought.<br />
<br />
==Hedge fund?==<br />
It is debatable on whether Columbia's endowment is actually a hedge fund in disguise (as Harvard's clearly is). However, it is known that they employ the services of a prime broker.<br />
<br />
The majority of Columbia's endowment is invested in (admitted, external) hedge funds. Less than $1 billion is invested in publicly traded stocks picked directly by Columbia's office of finance.<br />
<br />
This is hardly an ideal arrangement because hedge funds and other alternative investments usually charge a "2-and-20" expense ratio. That is, 20% of any gains in a given year, and 2% of principal, regardless of whether the fund makes a gain or books a loss. Therefore, by investing predominantly in hedge funds instead of formulating its own investment strategies, Columbia's endowment is surrendering a significant percentage of potential gains each year in management fees.<br />
<br />
Nor is Columbia's endowment size inappropriate for a hedge fund. Most hedge funds are run under the $10 billion mark. Nor can Columbia plausibly claim that it does not have a sizable pool of financially savvy associates to draw from. A possible explanation as to why Columbia chose not to create its own hedge fund strategy and instead surrender at least 2% of principal and 20% of gains each year is because of a desire to avoid the backlash that endowment manager Jack Meyer at Harvard created when it was revealed that Harvard paid him $35 million one year. Such a salary, while high, is hardly exorbitant by hedge fund standards, which is probably why Meyer left shortly thereafter to start his own hedge fund (where he gets paid in excess of $100 million per year). The fact that the Harvard endowment's compound annual growth rate outpaced Columbia by ''at least'' 2-3% per year was apparently not considered.<br />
<br />
===Fund of funds===<br />
An alternative to this view is to see Columbia's endowment as analogous to a fund of funds, a type of hedge fund specializing in investments in other hedge funds. Though the compounded management fees described in the previous paragraphs motivate criticism of this type of investment vehicle, they are not necessarily worse performing. Funds of funds, through careful evaluation of asset managers in their portfolio, can deliver high absolute returns with greater diversification and potentially much less variance. They do this at a much lower cost than would be required for a single hedge fund to invest as broadly. The typical mid-size equities fund, for example, invests in far fewer than 4,000 securities at any given time.<br />
<br />
While Columbia certainly has the resources to manage a hedge fund using its pool of financially savvy alumni, the university is apparently taking a more conservative investment approach. Though the best model for the institution is open to debate, one should be wary of judging any investment philosophy solely on the basis of past performance.<br />
<br />
== External links ==<br />
* [http://finance.columbia.edu/controller/resources/reports-33061-TheTrusteesofColumbiaUniversityintheCityofNewYork.pdf Columbia's 2006 financial report]<br />
<br />
==References==<br />
<references/><br />
<br />
[[Category:Endowment|*]]</div>M3hrhttps://www.wikicu.com/index.php?title=Philolexian_Society&diff=53788Philolexian Society2015-04-27T23:47:10Z<p>M3hr: </p>
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<div>{{Infobox club<br />
|Name=Philolexian Society<br />
|Image=Philo.gif<br />
|Founded=[[1802]]<br />
|Recognition=<br />
|Membership=<br />
|Executive board=Moderator: Caleb LoSchiavo [[Barnard_College|CC]] '15<br />
Censor: Bella Pori [[Barnard_College|BC]] '15<br />
Scriba: Deanna Bennett [[Barnard_College|BC]] '14<br />
Chancellor: Celia Cooper [[Columbia_College|CC]] '15<br />
Literary Czar: Maura Barry-Garland [[Columbia_College|CC]] '16<br />
Impresario: Jenna Murdoch [[Barnard_College|BC]] '16<br />
Minister of Propaganda: Robbie Lyman [[Columbia_College|CC]] '15<br />
|Allocation=<br />
|Category=[[Debate_clubs|Debate]]<br />
|Website=http://www.columbia.edu/cu/philo/<br />
|Contact=Moderator}}<br />
<br />
{{wp-also}}<br />
<br />
The '''Philolexian Society''' is one of the oldest collegiate literary societies in the United States, and the oldest student group at Columbia. It is known primarily for its witty debates, unabashedly anachronistic air, and pretensions to pseudo-intellectualism and faux-erudition.<br />
<br />
The society aims to "improve its members in Oratory, Composition and Forensic Discussion". The name Philolexian is Greek for "Lover of discourse," and the society's motto is the Latin word "Surgam", meaning "I shall rise". The society publishes a literary journal of the same name twice a year. <br />
<br />
It has many famous alumni and an excellent website.<br />
<br />
==History==<br />
<br />
The Society was founded on [[May 17]], [[1802]]. Originally, freshmen were barred from entry, and to satisfy them, the [[Peithologian Society]] was founded four years later. For a century, these two societies would be rivals, until Peitholgian ceased to exist after the turn of the century. After maintaining a continuous existence for over 130 years, Philolexian succumbed to periods of intermittent dormancy over the next 20 years, thanks to a combination of administrative interference, the Great Depression, and student apathy following an internal power struggle. In the 1930s, for example, society president [[Ralph de Toledano]] noted that the group was almost exclusively devoted to drinking wine and listening to jazz. Although a postwar incarnation included such distinguished names as [[Allen Ginsberg]], [[John Hollander]], [[Jason Epstein]], and [[Robert Butler]], Philolexian effectively ceased to function in the early 1950's. The society was revived once in the 1960s by [[Ben Stein]] and others, largely as an adjunct to [[Alpha Delta Phi]], but the effort failed to take hold. In [[1985]] Philolexian was reconvened again by six students and has been active ever since. The leader of the most recent revival, [[Thomas Vinciguerra]], is now known as "the Avatar".<br />
<br />
==Activities==<br />
<br />
Beyond its weekly debating sessions, the Society administers the [[Joyce Kilmer Memorial Bad Poetry Contest]]. It also hosts a [[Beat Night]], reading poetry of the [[Beat Generation]] aloud on [[The Steps]], and holds an annual [[Croquet Tea]] on [[Mathematics Lawn]], in which members appear in 19th century costume. Recently, Philo has attempted to broaden its range of activities, having hosted a [http://bwog.net/2010/04/02/chess-on-the-steps human chess match on the Steps] and tea with members of the University faculty, as well as co-sponsoring a book club event during Queer Awareness Month.<br />
<br />
=== Prizes and Contests ===<br />
In addition to the Kilmer Bad Poetry contest, Philo is involved with three other campus prizes and contests. The [[Philolexian Centennial Washington Prize]] oratory contest is conducted once every four years by the Society, and in [[2011]] the society helped conduct the [[George William Curtis Medal]] oratory contest, after Columbia forgot to hold it the previous year. The [[Philolexian Prize]], one of the oldest endowed student prizes at Columbia, oddly, is awarded by the English Department without any collaboration with the Society.<br />
<br />
== Past debate resolutions ==<br />
* Resolved: Having an embarrassing name is worse than having an embarrassing face<br />
* Resolved: Penguins deserve to fly<br />
* Resolved: We only want what's bad for us<br />
* Resolved: Student government is incredibly lame<br />
* Resolved: Everyone hates America because we are fat<br />
* Resolved: Change comes through the barrel of a gun<br />
* Resolved: Parents have no business raising children<br />
* Resolved: Madness and Genius are separated by degrees of success<br />
* Resolved: If you've stolen it, you've earned it<br />
* Resolved: Abortion is gay<br />
* Resolved: The laws of science are unconstitutional<br />
* Resolved: Mo' money, mo' problems<br />
<br />
== Alumni ==<br />
*[[Horatio Allen]] - railroad engineer<br />
*[[Charles Anthon]] - classicist<br />
*[[William Backhouse Astor]] - financier<br />
*[[William Theodore de Bary]] - East Asia scholar<br />
*[[Jacques Barzun]] - cultural historian<br />
*[[James Warner Bellah]] - writer of Westerns<br />
*[[John Berryman]] - poet<br />
*[[Samuel Blatchford]] - Supreme Court justice<br />
*[[Randolph Bourne]] - essayist<br />
*[[Robert Neil Butler]] - gerontologist<br />
*[[Sidney Buchman]] - screenwriter<br />
*[[Frederic René Coudert, Jr.]] - congressman<br />
*[[I.A.L. Diamond]] - screenwriter<br />
*[[Evert Augustus Duyckinck]] - literary critic<br />
*[[Jason Epstein]] - publisher<br />
*[[Charles G. Ferris]] - congressman<br />
*[[Hamilton Fish]] - Secretary of State<br />
*[[Nicholas Fish]] - diplomat<br />
*[[Stuyvesant Fish]] - president of the Illinois Central Railroad<br />
*[[William Dudley Foulke]] - journalist<br />
*[[Dixon Ryan Fox]] - president of Union College<br />
*[[James W. Gerard]] - ambassador to Germany<br />
*[[Oliver Wolcott Gibbs]] - chemist<br />
*[[Allen Ginsberg]] - Beat poet<br />
*[[Robert Giroux]] - publisher<br />
*[[Robert Gottlieb]] - editor<br />
*[[Paul Governali]] - football quarterback<br />
*[[James Hamilton]] - [[Alexander Hamilton]]'s son<br />
*[[Abram S. Hewitt]] - mayor of [[New York City]]<br />
*[[John Hollander]] - poet<br />
*[[Richard Howard]] - poet<br />
*[[Stephen Watts Kearny]] - general<br />
*[[Jackson Kemper]] - theologian<br />
*[[Joyce Kilmer]] - poet<br />
*[[Wellington Koo]] - Chinese politician and diplomat<br />
*[[William Langer]] - senator and governor of North Dakota<br />
*[[William Beach Lawrence]] - acting governor of Rhode Island<br />
*[[James Lenox]] - bibliophile<br />
*[[Alfred Thayer Mahan]] - military theorist<br />
*[[Brander Matthews]] - dramatic scholar<br />
*[[Thomas Merton]] - author and monk<br />
*[[John Purroy Mitchel]] - mayor of [[New York City]]<br />
*[[Nathaniel Moore]] - Columbia president<br />
*[[Edmund H. Pendleton]] - congressman<br />
*[[Benjamin Treadwell Onderdonk]] - bishop<br />
*[[Henry Ustick Onderdonk]] - bishop<br />
*[[John L. O'Sullivan]] - journalist<br />
*[[William Barclay Parsons]] - engineer of the [[New York City]] [[subway]]<br />
*[[William Milligan Sloane]] - historian<br />
*[[Ben Stein]] - humorist, speechwriter, actor<br />
*[[John Lloyd Stephens]] - explorer<br />
*[[George Templeton Strong]] - diarist<br />
*[[Ralph de Toledano]] - conservative commentator<br />
*[[William R. Travers]] - sportsman<br />
*[[John Howard Van Amringe]] - dean of [[Columbia College]]<br />
*[[Thomas Vinciguerra]] - journalist<br />
*[[Peter Dumont Vroom]] - governor of [[New Jersey]]<br />
*[[Walter Wager]] - novelist<br />
*[[Gideon Yago]] - TV personality<br />
<br />
== External links ==<br />
* [http://www.columbia.edu/cu/philo/ Philolexian Society website]<br />
<br />
[[Category:Societies]]<br />
[[Category:Debate clubs]]<br />
[[Category:Philolexian Society|*]]</div>M3hrhttps://www.wikicu.com/index.php?title=Varsity_Show&diff=53782Varsity Show2015-04-27T23:43:36Z<p>M3hr: /* West End Preview */</p>
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<div>{{Infobox club<br />
|Name=Varsity Show<br />
|Image=Vshow.jpg<br />
|Founded=[[1894]]<br />
|Recognition=[[ABC]]<br />
|Membership=22<br />
|Executive board=Director and 2 Producers<br />
|Allocation=Lots<br />
|Category=[[:Category:Performance_clubs|Performance]]}}<br />
{{wp-also}}<br />
The '''Varsity Show''', founded in [[1894]] as a fundraiser for the university's fledgling athletic teams, is one of the university's oldest traditions, and certainly its oldest performing arts tradition. Every year, the Varsity Show produces a unique full-length show that skews and satirizes many aspects of life at Columbia. And every year, students, administrators, and many more members of the Columbia community pack Roone Arledge Auditorium to engage in the century-old tradition of the Varsity Show.<br />
<br />
Ironically, many of the administrators being parodied and lambasted are often sitting in the front rows of the audience. No study has been conducted to determine whether these administrators realize there's a reason they're being ridiculed on stage.<br />
<br />
The VShow has been accused of nepotism. In [[2013]], for instance, the new creative team... strongly resembled... the previous one<ref>http://www.ivygateblog.com/2013/10/drama-drama-a-do-over-for-the-119th-annual-varsity-show/</ref>.<br />
<br />
The [[2006]]-[[2007]] show had an allocation of $14,500.00, though most of the show's revenue comes from ticket sales.<br />
<br />
Past directors and writers include such distinguished names as [[Oscar Hammerstein]], [[Lorenz Hart]], [[Richard Rodgers]], [[I. A. L. Diamond]], and [[Herman Wouk]].<br />
<br />
== Show Preparations ==<br />
<br />
In early October, the previous year's creative team interviews and auditions candidates to succeed them, and chooses a creative team of eight or nine students, filling the following roles: producer, director, writer, composer/lyricist, choreographer, and art director. The newly-minted creative team runs auditions for actors in late November/early December. The Varsity Show is notoriously the most selective casting process in Columbia theatre, and the results are always the result of much gossip and debate. Though the numbers vary from year to year, around 150 people audition for the show, singing a one-minute song selection, performing a scene with a random partner, and sometimes being asked to do improv comedy. From this group, around 25 people are asked to attend cast callbacks. An invitation to callbacks is automatically extended to performers from past Varsity Shows. Callbacks are typically held on a Saturday from 8am until 3pm. Those who have been called back perform a monologue of a "Columbia character," do improv within said character, and learn an original song and dance. From the performers that participate in callbacks, the creative team casts twelve to fifteen. The debates over casting notoriously span hours, and the new cast is welcomed into the Varsity family through a special ritual that's stuff of rumors and legend (although pictorial evidence shows that cream pies are somewhat involved). <br />
<br />
== West End Preview == <br />
<br />
Around mid-February, the Varsity Show team presents a cutting of some scenes and songs that have been written so far to the general public at Havana Central. This tradition dates back to before the West End bar was replaced by Havana Central, as the name suggests. For a nominal fee, the general public is encouraged to come preview the work that the Varsity Show team has produced. As of 2015, the West End Preview is performed on campus (at the Event Oval in the Diana).<br />
<br />
== Turkey Day ==<br />
<br />
Midway through March, alumni of past Varsity Show creative teams and casts are welcome to watch a full draft of the Varsity Show, and are then welcome to submit critiques for the purpose of creating the best show for the general public. The discussions and original draft of the show previewed at Turkey Day are highly confidential<ref>http://bwog.com/2013/05/04/varsity-show-review-missed-connections/#comment-1090923</ref>.<br />
<br />
== Class Act == <br />
<br />
During NSOP, members of previous Varsity Shows are welcome to come back and perform a "cabaret" of past Varsity Show songs and skits for the incoming freshman class in Roone.<br />
<br />
== 2013-2014 Cast ==<br />
<br />
Actors:<br />
<br />
Sam Balzac, CC ’17<br />
Ellie Beckman, CC ’16<br />
Brittany Beljak, BC ’16<br />
Lacey Bookspan, BC ’17<br />
Michael Carter, CC ’14<br />
Alex Donnelly, CC ’14<br />
Lindsay Garber, BC ’16<br />
Emma Grueskin, BC ’17<br />
Kyle Marshall, CC ’17<br />
Brittany Searles, BC ’17<br />
Matt Soto, CC ’16<br />
Sean Walsh, CC ’14<br />
<br />
Creative Team:<br />
<br />
Director: Emily Feinstein, BC ’14 (Actor, V116)<br />
Producers: Allie Carieri, CC ’15 (Actor, V118); Ally Engelberg, BC ’15 (Producer, V119); Renée Kraiem, BC ’14 (Stage Manager, V119)<br />
Composer: Solomon Hoffman, CC ’14 (Composer, V118)<br />
Lyricist: Nick Parker, CC ’14 (Lyricist, V119)<br />
Writers: Rae Binstock, CC ’15; Eric Donahue, CC ’15 (Writer, V119)<br />
Choreographer: Lauren Wingenroth, BC ’15 (Assistant Choreographer, V119)<br />
Art Director: Jiin Choi, CC ’14 (Art Director, V119)<br />
<br />
== Trivia ==<br />
* The Varsity Show coined the term "[[PrezBo]]".<br />
* Sometimes called VShow or Veesh.<br />
* [[Songs|"Roar, Lion, Roar"]] is based on a Varsity Show melody.<br />
<br />
==See also==<br />
* [[Varsity Show performances]]<br />
* [http://www.thevarsityshow.com/about/ "Sing A Song of Morningside"] - A history of the Varsity Show<br />
* [https://exhibitions.cul.columbia.edu/exhibits/show/varsity-show The Varsity Show: A Columbia Tradition], University Archives Online Exhibit<br />
<br />
== External links ==<br />
* [http://www.thevarsityshow.com/ Varsity Show website]<br />
<br />
==References==<br />
<references/><br />
<br />
[[Category:Performance clubs]]<br />
[[Category:Traditions]]<br />
[[Category:Annual events]]<br />
[[Category:Varsity Show]]</div>M3hrhttps://www.wikicu.com/index.php?title=Los_Angeles&diff=53447Los Angeles2014-11-29T08:59:39Z<p>M3hr: </p>
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<div>{{wp-also}}<br />
<br />
'''Los Angeles''' is the largest city on the west coast, and the second largest city in the United States (after [[New York City]]). Appropriately enough, LA is the opposite to NYC in practically every way: the weather is the same year-round, public transportation is virtually non-existent by comparison, and few buildings rise above two stories tall. Like New York, however, it is very polluted and has a big immigrant population, legal or otherwise.<br />
<br />
Much of Los Angeles is covered by ghettos and ruled by gangs. One Angeleno equated Los Angeles to "[[the Bronx]], multiplied by six." However, the area also boasts some of the most affluent neighborhoods/suburban tax havens in the world, including Beverly Hills and Newport Beach.<br />
<br />
It has 2 main Universities, [[UCLA]], and The [[University of Southern California]] (USC), which share a extreme rivalry. L.A. also has [[Caltech]], but located on its outskirts, because it engages in unnecesarily dangerous experiments.<br />
<br />
It is rare to find someone at Columbia who is from Los Angeles who did not go to the tony [[Harvard-Westlake]] school.<br />
<br />
The newly elected mayor of the city, [[Eric Garcetti]], is a CC and SIPA alum, so the place has that going for it.<br />
<br />
[[Category:California]]<br />
[[Category:Cities]]</div>M3hrhttps://www.wikicu.com/index.php?title=Brian_Wagner&diff=53434Brian Wagner2014-11-12T06:54:42Z<p>M3hr: </p>
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<div>'''Brian Wagner,''' [[SEAS|SEAS]] '[[2013|13]] served as editor in chief of ''[[The Blue and White]]'' for the [[2012]] calendar year. Impressively, and unprecedentedly, he served simultaneously as managing editor of [[Bwog]]. Objectively the best.<br />
<br />
Wagner majored in Computer Engineering. After graduating, he went west, where he flourished in the golden pastures of California.<br />
<br />
{{succession|preceded=[[Mark Hay]]|succeeded=[[Conor Skelding]]|office=Editor in Chief of ''The Blue and White''|years=2012}}<br />
<br />
[[Category:SEAS alumni|Wagner]]<br />
[[Category:Class of 2013|Wagner]]<br />
[[Category:B&W editors|Wagner]]</div>M3hr