1. The former graduate board president of the oldest exclusive final club at Harvard has resigned after suggesting that allowing women into the club could lead to sexual assault. Charles M. Storey (’82), president of Harpoon Brewery, announced his resignation last week as graduate board president of the Porcellian Club on Harpoon’s website. “As a man who takes issues of sexual assault extremely seriously and as a leader of an amazing company where women have the same opportunities as men and where we have zero tolerance for any kind of discrimination,” he wrote. “I am disappointed in myself.” That was the second time Storey apologized for the comment. This time, he responded to criticism that his first shot at an apology, which was issued Wednesday, seemed insincere when he said he “chose (his) words poorly and it came out all wrong,” The Harvard Crimson reports.
2. The University of Maryland’s campus is turning into one giant, outdoor piano bar thanks to a student group’s new project. The students behind Pianos for Play placed five outdoor pianos at various locations on campus for students to use and enjoy as they pass by between classes. The founders say they hope the project does more than simply make music accessible to students. They hope it will fuse the artist and musician communities and foster a rich cultural community on campus. “It’s cool to see how people connect to this piano in different ways,” says Joelle Lang, the group’s social media director. “Someone connects to it because they painted it, someone connects to it because they appreciate the art and someone connects to it because they appreciate the music and how they can play it.”
3. With the last month’s unanimous approval of a student government bill, the University of California-Berkeley could eventually offer on-campus medical abortions. That is, if the students can get administration approval. The Associated Students of the University of California’s bill, passed March 16, urges the school to give students access to medical, non-surgical abortions, also known as a pill abortion, in the on-campus health center. In a statement emailed to USA TODAY College, UC-Berkeley administrators say that while they fully support students’ right to elect to have an abortion, they oppose offering the service on campus because the school “is surrounded by a high-quality, well-established network of health providers who are expert in this area.” In the coming weeks, the students plan to continue their attempt to bring the student body together with various peaceful demonstrations and meetings with the health center’s staff and the administration.
4. It’s not exactly a secret that professional athletes make a lot of money. However, their lack of financial planning means they often end up in financial trouble during retirement. Sports Illustrated estimated 78% of NFL players and 60% of NBA players are bankrupt or financially distressed just a few years after they retire. But one banking exec is looking to change this narrative. Drew Hawkins, managing director and head of Morgan Stanley’s Global Sports and Entertainment division, has initiated a financial literacy program aimed at helping collegiate athletes plan for their financial futures, according to Morgan Stanley. Hawkins’ program — which will enlist the help of professional athletes — aims to help to “arm players with some financial bona fides at the beginning of their career, before the real earning starts,” according to the bank’s website.
5. In 2014, nearly 70% of seniors who graduated from public and nonprofit colleges had student loan debt averaging at $28,950 per borrower, according to Project on Student Debt, run by the independent, nonprofit organization The Institute for College Access & Success (TICAS). But it does turn out that there are some places where the climate for student debt management is a bit more forgiving than others, and in those places student debt seems like more of a sound investment. According to Schools.com, the best states for repaying student loan debt in 2016 are:
- Washington
- Texas
- Wyoming
- Virginia
- Kansas
Read the entire list — and check out the worst states for repaying student loan debt — by heading over to college.usatoday.com.
