In the News
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Equal Opportunity Casting for School Shows
Together with his Cappies
colleagues, and with support from numerous school officials, Strauss has
called attention to the need for equal opportunity casting in high school
performances—and the right of all students to audition for any role,
regardless of their race or ethnic background. The issue arose in 2005 in a
performance of a Cappies show, the musical
Big River, at a high school in
Maryland. In it, the director cast an African-American to portray Huck Finn
and a Caucasian to portray the slave Jim. At first, the publisher objected
and barred the students from performing their Cappie-nominated song, “Muddy
Water,” on C-Span’s “Close-Up” show and at the Baltimore Cappies Gala. The
publisher also inquired into the racial composition of the casting of
another song, “There Is Nothing Like a Dame,” from the musical
South Pacific, to be presented
at the Cappies Gala of the National Capital Area. When officials from the
Cappies and the school districts objected, the publisher agreed to allow the
two songs to be performed at the Kennedy Center. “Muddy River” won a Cappie
in the Song category, the performers who portrayed Huck and Jim (Jay Frisby
and Nick Lehan) won Cappies for Lead and Featured Actor in a Musical, and
the performer who led the South Pacific Song (Carlos Vasquez, in the role of
Luther Billis) won a Cappie for Comic Actor in a Musical. The
media attention given to this
question, and its successful outcome, sent a message to the directors of
high school plays and musicals that they can freely cast the best student
for each role, without regard to race. |
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Harvard's Management of its Endowment Over the last forty years, Harvard’s endowment has grown five-fold, adjusted for inflation. Even with its new wealth, Harvard has increased its tuition and student loan burdens on students, over this same period. At the same time, Harvard has paid the individuals who manage its endowments—who are employees of the university—as much as $35 million per year each. William Strauss has joined with several other members of the Harvard Class of 1969 in raising concerns about the management of the university’s endowment. He and his classmates have received national media attention by speaking out against the compensation it has paid, and continues to pay, its employee fund managers. They have called upon Harvard to use its great wealth to stop increasing tuition, eliminate student loans, and forgive debts for recent graduates who are pursuing careers in public service, teaching, care giving, or the arts. Strauss and his classmate David Kaiser explained their position in an op-ed piece in the Harvard Crimson.
For information about this alumni campaign, contact
William Strauss
directly. |
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Other Articles on this Topic Harvard Dropouts: Endowment's Chief to Leave With Others January 12, 2005 The Wall Street Journal Investment Manager to Exit Endowment at Harvard January 12, 2005 The New York Times
Harvard's high-paid star investor leaving |
Alums Decry University Investor Salaries December 12, 2003 Harvard Crimson Harvard's fund salaries may hit $40m December 11, 2003 The Boston Globe Harvard alums criticize money managers' salaries December 8, 2004 Yale Daily News $60 Million Fund Managers December 01, 2004 Harvard Crimson |
| Generational
Issues CALLING ATTENTION TO THE GOOD NEWS ABOUT TODAY’S YOUNG PEOPLE Together with Neil Howe, Strauss has spoken out often, and written several articles, about the many positive aspects of today’s young people, from rising achievement to declining rates of teen crime, pregnancy, and substance abuse, to the rise in youth volunteering. Their books about the “Millennial Generation” (Millennials Rising, Millennials Go to College, Millennials and the Pop Culture) address these issues at length. The Cappies program, co-founded by Strauss, celebrates the achievement of young performers, journalists, and theater technicians. Two of his musicals also address these themes—MaKiddo in schools and Free-the-Music.com in music and politics.
"Why wait for a midlife crisis when you can have one
at 25" |
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College Tuition and Student Loan Burdens Together with his book-writing colleague, Neil Howe, William Strauss continues to call attention to rising tuitions and steeply rising student loan burdens. Adjusted for inflation, higher education today costs three times what it did forty years ago, and student loan burdens are more than five times larger. Strauss sees this as a serious problem for today’s young people, especially those who wish to enter public service, teaching, or the arts. He also sees it as a problem for colleges in the years ahead, as prospective students and their families will increasingly view higher education in terms of its real financial bottom line |
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