The Low Down

In this episode, Richard Bulliet, Professor of History and Middle East Studies at Columbia, and Dr. Nina Ansary '89BC, '91GSAS, '09GSAS, '13GSAS, the author of the book, Jewels of Allah: The Untold Story of Women in Iran, discuss the women's movement in Iran and how Ansary's book breaks down stereotypical assumptions and the often misunderstood story of women in Iran today.

"Based on her doctoral thesis on the women's movement in Iran, Jewels of Allah shatters stereotypical assumptions and the often misunderstood story of women in Iran today. Challenging the dominant narrative of the demise of women and their downward spiral into passive submission since the Islamic Revolution of 1979, Ansary argues that 'despite the current regime's best laid plans to redirect women into the private domain, the female population in Iran is distinguished by an unprecedented surge in female literacy and a flourishing feminist movement against the boundaries of traditional religious prescription.' " 

- Barnard Center for Research on Women (BCRW)

This talk was brought to you by BCRW and the Middle East Institute at Columbia University.

Catch up on the latest news from your Columbia alumni community this week. 

If you tried to define television today, odds are that your definition would be very different from what it might have been just 10 years ago. Thanks to streaming services like Netflix and Hulu, more and more people are using their computers as their TVs. And it's not just serial programming that's moved online. Television news outlets have also made the move, producing content specifically for the web.

In this episode, CNN's Meredith Artley addresses this digital shift head-on, discussing how the old barriers between "digital" and "traditional" journalism are crumbling faster than ever.

This talk was presented as part of the Hearst Digital Media Lecture series at the Columbia Journalism School.

 Spring is coming! At least, according to our nation's most famous groundhogs. 

Neither Punxsutawney Phil nor Staten Island Chuck saw his shadow as they emerged from their winter dens this morning, and legend dictates that if the groundhog does not see his shadow on Groundhog Day, there will be early spring-like weather.

But, if our experience with winters at Columbia is anything to go by, we won't be swapping our boots for flip flops any time soon.

Check out these wintry scenes of our campus during this month in history, frozen in time.

By Lynn Berger '84TC, '90TC of the Columbia Career Coaches Network

From time to time, all of us experience a career slump; however, it can be a meaningful experience. It allows us to identify the gaps in our work and career. Let's explore how you can identify your interests, motivated skills, personality style, and values to allow you to achieve greater career satisfaction.

So, the question is posed—“How can you overcome a career slump?” The best way to answer this question is to imagine you are creating and putting together the pieces of an intriguing, challenging, and rewarding puzzle. Each piece needs to be closely examined, shifted, and viewed from a variety of perspectives. Once you are able to fit the pieces of your puzzle together, you will have created the complete image, which in effect, will become your fulfilling career.

Catch up on the latest news from your Columbia alumni community this week.

Injuries in youth sports have become all too common. And the injuries aren't minor. Torn ACLs and concussions make regular appearances on high school fields and courts. So, what exactly is the problem that we’re facing? And when did it become apparent to coaches that there was this huge problem with sports injury on a youth level in this country? An expert panel offers answers.

Panelists include: Dr. Christopher S. Ahmad '90SEAS (Head Team Physician for the New York Yankees), Diana Caskey (Head Women's Swimming and Diving Coach at Columbia University), Jim Gossett (Associate Athletics Director for Sports Medicine and Head Athletics Trainer for the Columbia Lions), Glenn Meyers '84CC, '85SEAS, '01SEAS (Former Columbia Baseball Team Captain, former Professional Baseball Player for the California Angels and Minnesota Twins), Dr. Beth Shubin Stein '91CC, '96PS (Assistant Professor in the Department of Orthopedic Surgery at Weill Cornell Medical College), Dr. Brent Walker (Associate Athletics Director of Championship Performance at Columbia University).

Did you know that over 7,400 Columbia couples met and fell in love through Columbia?

Some were hit by Cupid's arrow on the first day of classes, while others connected years later through the Columbia alumni network. 

With Valentine's Day just around the corner, we've compiled a few of our favorite Columbia love stories—written and shared by our alumni—that would give Nicholas Sparks a run for his money.  

Do you have your own Columbia love story to share?  E-mail us your story and photo(s) to: [email protected].

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In honor of Black History Month, we look back at some of our trailblazing and accomplished black alumni.

Did you know the Pulitzer Prizes, established and endowed by the Graduate School of Journalism founder Joseph Pulitzer, are administered by Columbia each year?

Pulitzer's will established Columbia as the seat of the administration of the prizes. In his will, Pulitzer bestowed an endowment of $2,000,000 for the establishment of a Journalism school, one-fourth of which was to be "applied to prizes or scholarships for the encouragement of public service, public morals, American literature, and the advancement of education."

Check out these other facts you may not know about the highest national honor in print journalism.