Our Weekend Roundup is released on Sunday mornings during the school year and features an engaging rundown of the news from the previous week in the form of a briefing. It also includes editors’ picks from other sections. Subscribe here to receive emails like this.
Eavan Boland — a celebrated Irish poet and the longtime director of Stanford’s creative writing program — died after a stroke at her home in Dublin on Monday, prompting an outpouring of grief from writers across the world.
At Stanford, Boland is credited by colleagues with expanding the creative writing program for both undergraduates and fellows, increasing the breadth of classes offered while continuing to emphasize access to the program for all students. But she also continued to teach undergraduate courses, leaving a lasting impression on students who remember her as a mentor and as an inspiration.
As a poet, Boland also enjoyed international acclaim. She was one of the most prominent female writers in Irish literature, writing poems that centered on domestic life at a time when the loudest voices in the Irish literary scene were male. She published more than 10 volumes of poetry and two volumes of prose, receiving numerous honors and awards.
According to Provost Persis Drell, “absolutely nothing is off the table” for fall quarter.
Drell made that remark at a Wednesday Zoom conversation, where she also said that University administrators have discussed using tents for instruction in the fall to “take advantage of the weather” and potentially slow the spread of the disease by being outdoors.
The half-dozen options under consideration, according to the Fall Planning Task Force, range from holding another virtual quarter to bringing everyone back to campus in fall. The University has also discussed starting the academic year in winter and continuing through the summer quarter. Hybrid options include different start times or different modules of instructions for undergraduates and graduate students, along with a mix of online and in-person classes.
Sound grim? If so, you’re not alone: Some students have decided to file for a leave of absence and opt out of a virtual spring quarter altogether.
Here’s what else is happening:
For the latest coronavirus updates, follow along with The Daily’s live blog, which includes a map of confirmed cases and a timeline of Stanford’s response to the outbreak.
On April 7, Stanford promised its students “amnesty” if they reported potentially dangerous items left in their rooms. But a spokesperson for the University’s public safety department told The Daily that packing staff hired by Stanford have been instructed to contact University police if they come across any potentially hazardous items, including illegal drugs or firearms, and the department “cannot offer amnesty for illegal activity.”
The Daily’s opinions section would be nothing without writers such as Casey, Mi and Milhaupt, as editors Claire Dinshaw and Adrian Liu point out in discussing the shifting purpose of the opinions section. Together they call for more op-eds submissions, highlighting ideas and experiences yet to be represented. “Share your valuable understanding with us,” they write: “Tell us what we might do and why we should do it.”
Here are some (virtual) events to put on your calendar this week:
Hoover Institution fellow Scott Atlas and Stanford economics professor John Taylor will discuss COVID-19 and reopening the economy on Tuesday as part of Hoover’s virtual policy briefings series.
The Stanford Spoken Word Collective is presenting open mic night every Friday for a chance to share in poetry and community, as well as hear from a different featured poet each week.
Have an event you’d like featured in next week’s roundup? Let us know at [email protected].
Last week in “Humans of Stanford”
“I realized that sharing my thoughts with the world is powerful. During winter break, I took a trip on my own to Europe, and on the final night of my trip, I decided to do an Instagram Live from the Eiffel Tower. I wasn’t sure what I was going to talk about, but for an hour or so, I got on and talked about the experiences I’d had on the trip and all of the lessons I’d learned.
Over those few weeks, I’d spent time on my own reflecting on so much trauma from my childhood, high school and freshman year. A few friends tuned in and one even hopped on with me. The biggest lesson I learned was that you can be alone but not alone.”
For more on Micheal Brown ’22 and the full “Humans of Stanford” project, please visit @stanforddaily on Instagram.
That’s all for this roundup. Though The Daily is suspending its print edition, we’ll continue to bring you updates on coronavirus, online spring and more through our email newsletters, social media platforms and our website, stanforddaily.com.
