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Columbia CollEgE Today
during my first semester at
the College, I attended a presentation
by a representative
of the New York City Police
Department. He was on campus as
a recruiter, looking for students who
might be interested in careers in law
enforcement after graduation. If that
sounds a bit strange, consider that this
was in fall 1967, months before the
demonstrations and the police bust that
left an indelible impression on anyone
who was on campus on the night of
April 30, 1968.
I’ve long since forgotten the speaker’s
name, but I remember one thing he
said. The basic point of his pitch was
this: Wouldn’t the city be better off with
police officers who have been educated
at schools like Columbia and who have
put considerable thought into their
choice of law enforcement as a career,
as opposed to those who signed up
because they were attracted by the prospect
of wearing a badge and carrying a
gun and putting in their 20 years before
they got out?
I don’t know if anyone in that room
took him up on his offer, and I confess I
didn’t give much thought to his point at
the time. As a first-semester freshman,
I wasn’t particularly career-focused —
and police work would have been toward
the bottom of a list had I had one.
I’d gone purely out of curiosity, the same
impulse that took me to many other
such events that year. I thought it would
be interesting to hear what a police
recruiter had to say and what his pitch
might be to a classroom of Columbians.
His message came back to me during
the debate about whether to invite
ROTC back to campus, after Congress
voted in December to repeal the “Don’t
Ask, Don’t Tell” policy that had prohibited
openly gay men and women from
serving in the military. Six years ago, the
University Senate (whose decisions are
non-binding) voted 53–10 against inviting
ROTC back, largely because “Don’t
Ask, Don’t Tell” contradicted the University’s
policy against discrimination.
But this spring, after surveying students,
W i t h i n t h e F a m i l y
The Times, They Continue To Change
soliciting e-mails from other
members of the Columbia
community and holding
three open forums, the Senate
voted 51–17 (with one abstention)
to approve a resolution
to invite ROTC back (see
“Around the Quads”). Later
that same day, the University
issued a statement saying it
would take the issue before
the Council of Deans, with
a final decision expected to
come before the end of the
school year.
It seems to me that the police recruiter’s
message applies to the military as
well. Wouldn’t the country be better off
with military officers who are educated
at schools like Columbia? That, to me,
is a compelling reason to invite ROTC
back to campus.
Taking “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” off
the board, are there other U.S. military
policies that stand in conflict with those
of the University? This is a very important
question, and any action regarding
ROTC should depend upon a satisfactory
answer. But if there are no conflicts,
ROTC should be viewed not as
a referendum on U.S. military service
or governmental policies but rather for
what it is: an opportunity for students
who want to serve in the military to
receive extensive expert training and to
enter service as officers.
Beyond the Core, the majors and
everything else they absorb in the classroom,
an important part of what students
learn while attending the College
is how to make life choices. As long as
the policies of the U.S. military do not
conflict with those of the University,
shouldn’t ROTC be one such choice for
Columbia students?
dean’s Day, which used to be a
stand-alone event, now is part
of Alumni Reunion Weekend
and will take place this year on Saturday,
June 4 (https://alumni.college.
columbia.edu/deansday). Its creator,
Joe Coffee Jr. ’41, passed away in Janu-
MAY/JUNE 2011
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ary (see “Obituaries,” March/April)
but must be looking down with pride
on how his baby has grown. The fact
that several private companies have
copied the idea and made similar programs
available to the public, albeit at a
much higher cost than what Columbia
charges, is a testament to its merit.
This year’s program is a strong one,
beginning with the Dean’s Continental
Breakfast, at which Dean Michele
Moody-Adams will offer remarks on
the state of the College. Moody-Adams
will then join Deans Feniosky Peña-
Mora (Engineering) and Peter Awn
(General Studies) and E.V.P. of Arts and
Sciences and Dean of Faculty Nicholas
Dirks to deliver Public Intellectual Lectures.
After lunch, five distinguished
faculty members will conduct Core
Curriculum lectures, several affinity
groups will hold receptions and alumni
singers from a spectrum of groups will
raise their voices in song.
The entire program (which is free
to reunion registrants) is open to all
alumni and parents at the nominal cost
of $75. If you want to eat on your own
and just attend the lectures and other
events, the cost is only $25. It’s a unique
opportunity to be a student for a day
and hear from some of Columbia’s
best and brightest.
Well done, Joe.