Eve Teasing is such euphemistic word. It makes sexual harassment sound like a hobby something to do in the evenings to tease boredom away. But let the word not sway you from the ugly truth that this crime happens all the time to girls of all sizes and shapes committed by disgracefully incomplete men (Men—pardon me - I meant apes.) Beasts of lower mental faculty grinning their ugly dental grin trying to grope where their hands have no business to be. because you see they can’t do it without force and love is something they haven’t heard of. and respect cannot be expected since, of it they are devoid. but we shall not avoid this subject because it needs to be talked about and we’ll shout a defiant shout to live free from sexual harassment Taking part in “Sexual Harassment Is Not Cool” So don’t let it fool you with its excuses and euphemisms because the word “Eve teasing” does just that.
Two more days in Costa Rica..Wednesday, y u come so soon? Once you get a hang of things, don’t look as lost on your way to classes and have a general sense of direction, being at a different UWC does not feel as different. You walk in into a class and people greet you like you’re expected to be there. The day seems to flow smoothly, you don’t need to keep referring to your mini schedule every hour to make sure you’re in the right place. But no matter how similar and comfortable UWC-CR is at this point, there are always differences that you can’t help but notice.
Patrick and I met with Jay, the CAS coordinator here at UWC-CR. There are no CASs due to Asian Week [which is why Pat and I flew in early to catch the CAS on Friday] so we only got to experience two CASs so far, but here is the information we’ve gathered through the students and Jay:
UWC-CR has 3 regular CAS days (Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays). School always ends at 1:15, lunch goes until 2 pm [see Pat’s post on the stuco website for details http://uwcusastuco.org/2012/03/14/276/ ] there is the first CAS block from 2pm-4pm and the second block from 4pm- 6pm. Of course there are exceptions to this, but these are the regular CAS times.
“The CAS fits into the schools schedule, but there are many types of physical activities that don’t fit into that” says Jay. Struggling to find time—sound familiar UWC-USA? However, there are exceptions to this like the hiking group that goes out on weekends, basketball that meets on Saturday mornings etc. Graduation requirements are similar to ours - 3 semesters of service, creativity and action but in addition to this you also have to have two weeks of service.
Project Week always needs to be service, [so UWC-USA, forget about the exchange, or SxSW, or San Diego etc] and you have other opportunities to complete these two required service weeks. This is a really interesting idea to me since us second years at UWC-USA have the option of joining a faculty sponsored trip, making our own trip or staying on campus/in town and chilling. They also have a mandatory journal that the group writes as a whole. They meet every day for their daily reflection and debrief the days events.
Alcohol policies are always twisted. Some students are unhappy with it because its too lenient, others think its too strict, and theres always a bunch that is plain indifferent. The way different schools deal with it is interesting too. Personally, I find it quite amusing how much time and energy we [need to] spend discussing, changing, adapting, revisiting or just talking about our alcohol policies - a good use of the time of the already over-scheduled UWC community, no?
I’m briefly going to outline the alcohol and drug related policies at both UWC-CR and UWC-USA, atleast the ones I am aware of. Please, feel free to inform/correct me about either school’s policies. If you’re already aware of the policies, feel free to skip the next two paragraphs.
The drinking age in the States is 21, so there is maybe one student at UWC-USA that can actually legally drink. Either way, drinking on campus is not allowed, and is considered a serious offense. If you are caught drinking, or with booze, you will have a disciplinary hearing. The hearing will be a meeting between you, your Resident Tutor (RT), the Dean of Students and The Vice President. [and probably any other faculty or student as needed, I think you are allowed to have your friends for support if you want them in the room]. The offenses are dealt on a case-to-case basis. Which basically means the committee will hear you out, you will not be subject to automatic suspension or expulsion. But, depending on what you were doing when you were caught, why/how you were caught, how serious the case is, you can expect bad things. There is however a policy called the non-disciplinary action. If, say you are too intoxicated to be in your right mind and are in a situation where you are likely to hurt yourself or somebody else, you [or probably your friend since, well, you are too drunk] can go to your RT and ask for help. In this case, there will be no suspensions or expulsions because the school doesn’t want someone’s life/health being risked due to fear of consequences. You will however have follow up sessions with your RT, the school counselor and other procedures as needed. There is a zero tolerance policy for drug use.
The legal drinking age in Costa Rica is 18. Given that the UWC is situated in Santa Ana, most students, whether of legal age or not, have access to alcohol. The school policy remains the same, no drinking on campus, however, if you are of legal age, you are allowed to drink off campus. The school does have breathalysers on campus that are used occasionally ‘as needed’. They follow the driving limit, which means you can drink [if you’re over 18] off campus, as long as you are not drunk. If you are underage..any amount of alcohol in your breath is a problem. If you’re 18 or older, a certain amount is fine*. However, if you are ‘drunk’, or the guard thinks that you are drunk, he can call in Leila [UWC-USAers, that’s Linda’s counterpart] and she has the right to use the breathalyser. Similar disciplinary actions follow.
Yesterday, we had a long talk with Leila about the residential life aspects at UWC-CR, and about the alcohol policy as well. That is when she showed us the breathalyser and briefly outlined the policy. She said ”I wish we didn’t have to use it, but now we use it as an educational tool.” She explained how they’re not here to suffocate kids. In fact, there are videos about alcohol planning that she plans to share/ has shared*. She also informed us that she went to different bars with some student council members to see if they were safe. Her main concern is a bar called Amigos that is a couple of blocks away. Neighbors and the police have informed her that its not safe, that there are drug dealer, muggers etc. There has been an incident where a gun was pointed at a student. Costa Rica is a comparatively safe country, she said, but a lot of it depends on where you go too.
I did take a trip to that bar twice last Friday, once with a small group and once with a large group after the show. Of course no names, because thats not the point of this blog [and Baba, mamu, UWC-USAers..no i did not actually drink (:] but personally yes, i thought that place was sketchy. So I completely understood when Leila expressed her concerns about the bar Amigos. Also, given that the school trusted the students enough to provide transportation to a bar* with a simple guideline [drink, don’t get drunk], the school rules really don’t seem that strict. But obviously people got drunk that night, and “screwed it up for everybody” as eloquently put by a student here (talking about the school organised trip)
“That was a decision with many risks, but to show them that we are accepting of different facts. We show that we trust, but also that unfortunately some students are not prepared to have that responsibility” Leila said about the trip the school had organized. “Its in your hands” she added, “because when that moment comes [when students need to be watched constantly] I am going to quit, because that is not why I am here”.
The alcohol policy came up at the student council meeting here at UWC-CR today, but was dismissed after a short discussion because students agreed that Leila had tried to work with them, but that “even though we like to think we are mature some of us are really not, and so we must face the consequences”*
UWC-CRers, consider yourself lucky, at least the school gives you chances. UWC-USA, with its legal obligations is a different story. There is no way we could have alcohol on campus, unless of course, someone is interested in being deported or jailed. In fact a recent informal ‘survey’ has hinted that the majority of the school does not want drinking on campus. This is not to say that these people are saints who do not drink at all. We have a large number of people who come from a drink-friendly culture but, that is not the point. First of all, we are living in a country where its illegal to drink unless you are 21 or older. Second, we all signed an agreement to be a part of a community that did not involve alcohol. Third, I think [and a bunch of people agree with me on this one] we are cool enough to have fun without booze, to party crazy with a natural high, to make the best of our life. So, if you are absolutely craving alcohol, wait a few more days [graduation is less than 3 months away, (tear)] and use the time instead to have a lovely time with your co-years and firsties/second years.
P.S. Being able to handle your drink is way cooler than being drunk, in my mind atleast.
*— i could not remember the exact words, excuse my poor note taking skills.
—>I totally forgot to mention this, so here’s an addition at 8:51 pm:
A lot of students at UWC-USA expressed concern at the lack of action during the recent disciplinary hearing we had regarding alcohol [then again, a similar number were concerned and almost unhappy that the student would be suspended/expelled]. Their main concern was that the lack of a solid action from the admin’s side would give students the idea that the admin doesn’t care/ does not have enough power/ or that its simply okay.
There was a clear divide between the Asians [for economy of words. full team: Asians and Pacific Islanders] and the non-Asians this morning. The Asians, all dressed in their traditional clothes were happy, smiling and excited for a surprise that only they knew about. The rest had a close resemblance to zombies, result of an email that was sent out last night that said breakfast-serving would be stopped at 7:15. Some bollywood music was played in an attempt to cheer people up, but most did not seem to care. They were more concerned about the lack of cutlery in the cafeteria. A couple of songs later the famous Jai Ho started. The non-Asians who were struggling to eat toast with chopsticks were relieved by the fact that no eyes were on them any more. Instead attention was directed to the center of the cafeteria where all the Asians gathered to dance. Early morning Flashmobs cheer up your day.
I then continued to my first early class of the week, Economics HL at 7:30 am. Yes classes do start at 7:30 here, then again, they also end at 1pm. With the lack of ACs and the Costa Rican climate, not staying in class past 1 was definitely a smart decision on administration’s part. As for Econ, I’d heard students raving about Russel, so I obviously had to attend his class. Unfortunately for me, he focused on a paper 3 exam this class period, so I did not get to experience his teaching method as much. I will be taking another class with him over the week. The schedule at UWC-CR definitely has some exceptions to it, but most classes are a double block and run for about 1 hour and 45 minutes with a short break in between.
Next up psychology at 9:30 am. We don’t have the course at UWC-USA, So I really did not know what to expect. We, or rather the class, learnt about S.I.T. F.A.E. [ I actually know the full forms at this point] and what not. Most interesting part about class: Viljami [Finland ‘13] will be dissecting a pig brain tomorrow at 7 pm. Whoever is interested should go to the Bio Lab then.
We then had meetings with John Carpenter, Tim Smith’s counter part, director of admissions and Leila Mata, Linda Curtis’s counterpart, Dean of students. I am going to dedicate another separate post to it because we covered some heavy topics today, [and honestly even with the empty common rooms I am at my 2am-UWC-USA sleep schedule, which is not helping with the constant feeling of estoy cansada]
At 2:30, or rather at 3:00pm we had another Asian week activity: Earth simulations. The non-Asians were given passports of different countries and were asked to develop their countries with the help of the resources they themselves had and with the help of the World bank. The Asians played the role of policemen, natural disasters, the World Bank and natural disasters. Countries were given conditions similar to their real life situations and the idea was to give the students a sense of what Asia and Oceania is like. Chaos descended as people were brought into jails, tried to escape from jails, tried stealing from other countries or having ‘illegal’ ways of development. Natural disasters had fun throwing buckets of water at countries [floods], sweeping across their land [tornadoes] and shaking everything off [earthquakes]. The simulation was called of early, and an all school facilitated discussion about the status of countries was conducted. The participants shared their perspectives based on the simulation and the program facilitators shared their facts and opinions. The news about rice pudding as snack led to an instant clearing of the library where the discussion was being held. I got about a bowl and a half for myself and head out for a nap [ after which i came back for dinner. yes, i love food]
After dinner I was at Hermosa’s Residence meeting. What I was not informed about, was that the meeting would be in Spanish. It was actually easy to comprehend because most students took care to talk slowly. It is after all, an attempt to improve your Spanish, not to show off your rapido espa~nol. Hermosa ladies were kind enough to take me as their own, and let me be a part of their note writing process. We talked about dorm sustainability, shower issues and then moved on to a party. Not just any party, but a carnival themed birthday party for Raisa [Brazil ‘13]. The Resident Coordinator Nela even brought out some carnival costumes, masks, decorations in addition to the food [yes I am one lucky girl].
After that here I am, exhausted and very close to crashing, but not crashing just yet. There was just a really interesting discussion about the Dalai Lama, the ‘Free Tibet’ movement and the Sino-Japanese conflict/relations - you know just the regular UWC common room/ dayroom/ room-mate conversations. Issues Presentations [equivalent of our Global Issues] tomorrow should be interesting. looking forward to another good, busy exciting day.
Amidst the tension of the rehearsal and the actual show [Danzas of the Lion Kingdom] couple of students managed to take us around Santa Ana and San Jose. An after party followed the beautifully put together show, and UWCers partied it out at at a place nearby. There were rumours about breathalysers being used at the gate [where students sign in and out], perhaps the alcohol policies are being revisited? I’ve talked to a bunch of pretty diverse students about the school and some policies, can’t wait to hear more from them. Sunday morning we took a little walk to the fruit market right outside campus and saw the lo[oooooooooo]ng line of Costa Rican students and parents who were here for the CR selection process. A football game, Asian Week preparations and decorations brought the warm day to a breezy night. Its about 11:00 pm and most people are asleep. Yes tomorrow is Monday and breakfast at 7:00 6:45 is going to be interesting with the start of the Asian Week. Looking forward to the week! Pura Vida!
Colegio del Mundo Unido Costa Rica’s Annual Musical [Lion King is this year’s pick!] combines this year with its annual dance show “Dances del mundo” to produce Danzas of the Lion Kingdom!
An attempt at understanding the complexity of Kony:
The current affairs CAS at UWC-CR breaks down into smaller groups after a general discussion to understand some of the many threads of the Kony web. Research going on about:
A ride to Sana fe, the railrunner to ABQ, a shuttle to the airport, another shuttle to the hotel, a taxi to the airport after an hour’s sleep, a delayed flight, landing at Houston just as the flight to San Jose is boarding, arriving at San Jose without a luggage and finally getting to Colegio Del Mundo Unido - Costa Rica, has been anything but uneventful.
You must have heard of the viral video created by Invisible Children (IC), a U.S. organization that has launched a one-year campaign (expires December 31, 2012) to eliminate Joseph Kony, the head of the Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA), a rebel group in Northern Uganda that has been embroiled in…
![Colegio del Mundo Unido Costa Rica’s Annual Musical [Lion King is this year’s pick!] combines this year with its annual dance show “Dances del mundo” to produce Danzas of the Lion Kingdom!](http://25.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_m0nhf14JC21rn78sjo1_1280.jpg)
