Wednesday, April 10, 2002

from the Office of News and Information

Swarthmore College has sent letters of admission to prospective members of

the Class of 2006. A total of 892 students, including 154 notified during
early-decision period, have been accepted–23 percent of the more than
3,900 who applied. Early decision applications were up 20% and overall
applications showed an increase of 11%.

Based on previous admissions patterns, Swarthmore expects the group of
admitted students to yield a first-year class of roughly 375 for next fall.

Of the admitted students who come from high schools that report class rank,

35% are valedictorians or salutatorians. Fifty-three percent are in the top

2 percent of their high school class, and 93% are in the top decile.

The admitted students come from five continents, 39 nations, and all 50
U.S. states as well as the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, and the
Virgin Islands. New York, the home state of 16% of the accepted students,
is the most represented state in the newly admitted class. California is
next, with 11%. Following, in order, are New Jersey, Pennsylvania,
Maryland, Massachusetts, Texas, Illinois, Florida, and Virginia. Canada,
with five students, is the most common country of origin among
international students in the admitted class. Four each are from France,
Hong Kong, Pakistan, and Thailand followed by three each from Bulgaria,
China, Ghana, Japan, and Singapore.

Fifty-seven percent of the admitted students come from public high schools,

29% from private independent schools, 6% from parochial schools, and 7%
from schools overseas.

Continuing the trend of recent years, more of the admitted students declare

“undecided” as their intended major than any other. Next, in order,
are
biology, engineering, political science, English, mathematics, economics,
and history.

Forty-three percent of the admittees identify themselves as American
students of color. Asian Americans make up 16% of the admitted class;
African Americans, 12%; and Latino/a students, 14%. One percent is in the
category Native American/Hawaiian/other.

Prospective students weekend will be April 20-22, with domestic students of

color being invited to visit the campus a day early, April 19.

*****

from the Office of News and Information

Acclaimed Palestinian poet Mahmoud Darwish will read his poetry for the
first time in the U.S. at Swarthmore College on Sunday, April 28, at 4:00
p.m. in the Lang Performing Arts Center. The event is free but seating is limited,

with priority given to Swarthmore students; please contact (610) 328-8200 or
lpacres.swarthmore.edu for reservation information.

Darwish, revered as the Palestinian national poet and savior of the Arab
language, will read following a concert by Marcel Khalife, an award-winning

Lebanese musician and composer who cancelled dates of his current North American

tour to attend the event. Darwish and Khalife will be introduced by
Columbia University professor Edward Said, a scholar of modern literature and
theory and an
expert on international and Middle Eastern politics.

Darwish, the author of more than two dozen books of poetry and prose, is
the recipient of numerous international literary awards, including the $350,000
Lannan Foundation Prize for Cultural Freedom. The foundation, based in
Santa Fe, N.M., announced the award in November and is also funding a major

English translation of his work that will be published this fall.

After learning of Darwish’s Lannan Foundation award, a group of Swarthmore

faculty and alumni inquired about his availability in order to bring him to

campus. Coincidentally, the Lannan Foundation was looking for a venue on the
East
Coast at which to introduce Darwish to the U.S., and it offered to sponsor his
visit to Swarthmore. Darwish’s visit also stems from Swarthmore’s interest
in expanding its program and resources in Islamic Studies, including the
addition of a full-time Islamicist in the religion department and of library

materials on Qur’an (scripture), Hadith (prophetic traditions), and Fiqh
(Islamic law and jurisprudence).

*****

* 13 Israeli soldiers were killed in a Palestinian ambush yesterday,
damaging already fragile hopes for peace in the region. The troops, who
were patrolling a West Bank refugee camp as part of an Israeli offensive
that has led to the deaths of some 200 Palestinians, were exposed to a
booby-trapped explosive, a suicide bomber, and rooftop gunmen in quick
succession. Israel had just withdrawn it’s military from two Palestinian
cities hours before the attacks, but the new killings cast a shadow of doubt
on Secretary of State Colin Powell’s ability to negotiate a ceasefire when
he visits the area later this week.

* David Duncan, the top Arthur Andersen executive in charge of auditing
Enron Corp., completed a plea bargain with the Justice Department yesterday.
As part of the bargain, Duncan, who was fired in January, pleaded guilty to
obstructing justice in the Enron case, saying he personally destroyed
documents last October to prevent the Securities and Exchange Commission
from finding wrongdoing in the firm’s accounting. Additionally, he will
testify against his former employer in Andersen’s trial on the same charge,
set for May 6.

* Ron Kirk, former mayor of Dallas, won Texas’ Democratic nomination
yesterday for the US Senate seat being vacated by retiring Republican Phil
Gramm. In beating Victor Morales, Kirk became Texas’ first black Senate
candidate and will now face the Republican nominee, Attorney General John
Cornyn, in the general election. If Kirk should win that race, he will be
the first minority from the South to be elected to the Senate by popular
vote.

*****

Faculty Lecture
Scheuer Room, 4:15 p.m.

“Experiences Versus Memories and Judgments: Where Is the Relevant Self?”
Psychology Department Colloquium with Dr. Daniel Kahneman, Princeton
University, National Academy of the Sciences.
Kirby Lecture Hall, 4:15 p.m.

“Iraq: Life Under U.N. Sanctions, Life Under Threat of U.S. Attack”
Slide presentation and discussion with Johanna Berrigan, Catholic Worker —

House of Grace, Philadelphia
Kohlberg 115, 4:15 p.m.

MST3K Showing
Trotter 203, 7:00 p.m.

Film Showing: Cheyenne Autumn
Kohlberg 226, 7:00 p.m.

Informal all-campus discussion about the war, hosted by Why War?
Kohlberg Coffee Bar, 7:00 p.m.

Film Showing: Sign Language Poetry
Kohlberg 115, 7:00 p.m.

Beit Midrash Inaugural Celebration
Lodge Five, 7:00 p.m.

College Democrats Meeting
Parrish Parlor East, 8:00 p.m.

Good Schools Pennsylvania Study Break
Parrish Parlor West, 8:00 p.m.

Film Society Film Screening
Kirby Lecture Hall, 10:00 p.m.

———-
NICKEL CREEK AND CALVIN WESTON’S BIG TREE PERFORMING THIS SATURDAY, APRIL
13TH IN UPPER TARBLE!!!

CALVIN WESTON’S BIG TREE WILL PERFORM AT 8:00 P.M.
NICKEL CREEK WILL PERFORM AT 10:00 P.M.

BOTH TICKET AND STUDENT ID REQUIRED!!!!
TICKETS ARE AVAILABLE FROM JENNY YIM IN 295 PARRISH.
NO TICKETS WILL BE DISTRIBUTED THE DAY OF THE SHOW.

*****

SPORTS UPDATE

The women’s lacrosse team trounced Chestnut Hill yesterday afternoon, 20-8.

Katie Tarr ’02, Jackie Kahn ’04, and Lucy Lang ’03 each scored four goals
in the first half, while Alexis Turner ’05 and Ele Forbes ’05 each netted a

hat trick and Christina Hinton ’04 and Amy DiBenedetto ’02 added single
goals. Jennifer Hart ’03 made 10 saves in net. The Garnet improve to 5-4
overall and have won three games in a row.

*****

The women’s tennis team coasted over Haverford yesterday, 7-2. Singles
players Anjani Reddy ’04, Kristina Pao ’04, Megan Speare ’05, Katherine
Voll ’03, and Katherine Berry ’05 all won in straight sets, while the
doubles teams of Reddy/Pao and Berry/Sarah Fritsch ’04 were also
victorious. The team is now 6-8 overall and 4-3 in the Conference.

*****

Ryan Pannorfi ’04 hit an RBI triple in the second inning to account for the

Garnet’s lone run in a 13-1 loss to Muhlenberg yesterday. Starter Francisco

Martinez ’02 took the loss, pitching three innings and giving up ten hits
and eight runs (seven earned). Jon Konits ’04 yielded five runs (three
earned) in one and two-thirds innings of relief, while Drew Adams ’03
closed the game with a perfect inning and a third. The team is now 14-11
overall, 6-3 in the Centennial Conference.

The softball team did not fare much better, dropping both games of a
doubleheader at Muhlenberg, 10-1 and 9-3. Box score and individual stats
were not available at the time of publication.

*****

* The New Jersey Nets claimed their first division title in the NBA as they

beat the Washington Wizards last night, 101-88. For the newly-crowned
Atlantic Division champs, the magic number for clinching the regular-season

Eastern Conference title is three. As usual, Jason Kidd led the Nets with
21 points, 12 assists, and eight rebounds while firing up the crowd with
his flashy play. Aaron Williams had 19 points, while Kenyon Martin scored
13. The Nets have won 50 games this season, a record for their franchise
since joining the NBA from the ABA in 1976.

* It was Luis Pujols’ managerial debut with the Detroit Tigers, but Frank
Thomas stole the show last night by hitting his 350th career home run to
lead the Chicago White Sox to an 8-2 win over the still-winless Tigers, who

are off to their worst start since 1952. They are the only team in baseball

which has not yet won a game in the 2002 season. In other MLB news, Manny
Ramirez hit his first home run of the season and Nomar Garciaparra hit his
third as the Boston Red Sox beat Kansas City 8-4. The Cleveland Indians won

their sixth straight game, beating Minnesota 5-4 as Chuck Finley made his
first start of the season and pitched six shutout innings. The Phillies
beat Atlanta 7-4 as Scott Rolen hit a two-run homer and knocked in the
go-ahead run in the bottom of the seventh inning off top Atlanta prospect
Tim Spooneybarger.

* The Montreal Canadiens, bolstered by the return of their captain Saku
Koivu, defeated the Ottawa Senators 4-3 to clinch a playoff berth. Koivu,
who was diagnosed seven months ago with abdominal cancer and had undergone
chemotherapy treatments, received an eight-minute standing ovation before
the game. The Canadiens scored three times in the second period with goals
from Andreas Dackell, Craig Rivet, and Richard Zednik, and managed to hold
off a third-period onslaught by Senators Jani Hurme, Chris Neil, and Marian

Hossa. Yanic Perreault scored the fourth and ultimately deciding goal for
the Canadiens.

*****

Today:
There are no contests scheduled for today.

Tomorrow:
Women’s tennis hosts Bryn Mawr, 3:30 p.m.
Women’s lacrosse hosts Bryn Mawr, 4:00 p.m.

*****

QUOTE OF THE DAY

“A computer lets you make more mistakes faster than any invention in human

history – with the possible exceptions of handguns and tequila.”
–Mitch Ratliffe

*****
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