Nicholas Winset
Encyclopedia
Nicholas Wolf Winset (born July 14, 1970, in Miami) is an American
polymath best known for media attention following his controversial termination from Emmanuel College in 2007.
and Miami, Florida
, where he attended the Vineyard School in Silver Bluff Estates and Ransom Everglades
School in Coconut Grove. He earned bachelor’s degrees in History, Business Administration, and Civil Engineering, as well as graduate degrees and certificates in Finance and Accounting. He is currently pursuing a doctorate in Energy Economics.
, Winset received media attention after posting a series of videos on YouTube
discussing his termination from Emmanuel College
in Boston. He was terminated for a controversial discussion about the massacre with his class that included the professor and a student pointing magic markers at each other and saying "bang". After talking about non-violent points of view and philosophies, which Winset explicitly stated he agreed with (such as Tibetan Buddhism
), Winset then used a prop alleging violence can paradoxically be used to stop violence. Following disclaimer and agreement to participate by the class, this was a segue into a larger discussion and assignment analyzing the almost non-existent effects of the shooting on the stock market
and on education-related securities.
The administration stated that they fired Winset after "students and parents . . . contact(ed) the administration with complaints." The professor and his supporters saw "his dismissal as a violation of academic freedom and an example of the way colleges may overreact to a nationally traumatic event." Winset said "it was abysmal at Emmanuel if an adjunct can be fired without a hearing based on saying some unpopular things one day in class. The whole point of tenure and free speech is to protect speech that is unpopular. If it is popular speech, you don't need to protect it." At that time, Winset did not have tenure, however, and had only been teaching at Emmanual for three weeks before being terminated. The college had neither interviewed nor talked to Winset prior to their decision, and had not held a formal public hearing regarding his termination.
The college issued a statement shortly after the videos were posted to YouTube denying that the termination was related to academic freedom. The statement went on say that Winset had violated the schools standards of conduct and civility and characterized the professor's actions as discriminatory.
Winset developed the comic strip “The Incredible Dreamworld of . . .”, which was produced in a variety of media and forms. In addition to print, this may have included graffiti and guerrilla art similar to Banksy’s work. The strip’s main characters were “furries” along with students and faculty at a mythical “York Polytechic Institute” inspired by WPI
, where Winset attended in Civil Engineering
.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
polymath best known for media attention following his controversial termination from Emmanuel College in 2007.
Background and education
Winset, a descendent of French Jews fleeing the Holocaust, was raised in the CaribbeanCaribbean
The Caribbean is a crescent-shaped group of islands more than 2,000 miles long separating the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean Sea, to the west and south, from the Atlantic Ocean, to the east and north...
and Miami, Florida
Miami, Florida
Miami is a city located on the Atlantic coast in southeastern Florida and the county seat of Miami-Dade County, the most populous county in Florida and the eighth-most populous county in the United States with a population of 2,500,625...
, where he attended the Vineyard School in Silver Bluff Estates and Ransom Everglades
Ransom Everglades
Ransom Everglades is an independent, non-profit, co-educational, college-preparatory day school serving grades six to twelve in Coconut Grove in Miami, Florida. It formed with the merger in 1974 of the Everglades School for Girls and the Ransom School for Boys...
School in Coconut Grove. He earned bachelor’s degrees in History, Business Administration, and Civil Engineering, as well as graduate degrees and certificates in Finance and Accounting. He is currently pursuing a doctorate in Energy Economics.
Controversy
After the Virginia Tech massacreVirginia Tech massacre
The Virginia Tech massacre was a school shooting that took place on April 16, 2007, on the campus of Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University in Blacksburg, Virginia, United States. In two separate attacks, approximately two hours apart, the perpetrator, Seung-Hui Cho, killed 32 people...
, Winset received media attention after posting a series of videos on YouTube
YouTube
YouTube is a video-sharing website, created by three former PayPal employees in February 2005, on which users can upload, view and share videos....
discussing his termination from Emmanuel College
Emmanuel College
Emmanuel College may refer to one of several academic institutions:in Australia* Emmanuel College, University of Queensland, part of the University of Queensland in Brisbane, Australia...
in Boston. He was terminated for a controversial discussion about the massacre with his class that included the professor and a student pointing magic markers at each other and saying "bang". After talking about non-violent points of view and philosophies, which Winset explicitly stated he agreed with (such as Tibetan Buddhism
Tibetan Buddhism
Tibetan Buddhism is the body of Buddhist religious doctrine and institutions characteristic of Tibet and certain regions of the Himalayas, including northern Nepal, Bhutan, and India . It is the state religion of Bhutan...
), Winset then used a prop alleging violence can paradoxically be used to stop violence. Following disclaimer and agreement to participate by the class, this was a segue into a larger discussion and assignment analyzing the almost non-existent effects of the shooting on the stock market
Stock market
A stock market or equity market is a public entity for the trading of company stock and derivatives at an agreed price; these are securities listed on a stock exchange as well as those only traded privately.The size of the world stock market was estimated at about $36.6 trillion...
and on education-related securities.
The administration stated that they fired Winset after "students and parents . . . contact(ed) the administration with complaints." The professor and his supporters saw "his dismissal as a violation of academic freedom and an example of the way colleges may overreact to a nationally traumatic event." Winset said "it was abysmal at Emmanuel if an adjunct can be fired without a hearing based on saying some unpopular things one day in class. The whole point of tenure and free speech is to protect speech that is unpopular. If it is popular speech, you don't need to protect it." At that time, Winset did not have tenure, however, and had only been teaching at Emmanual for three weeks before being terminated. The college had neither interviewed nor talked to Winset prior to their decision, and had not held a formal public hearing regarding his termination.
The college issued a statement shortly after the videos were posted to YouTube denying that the termination was related to academic freedom. The statement went on say that Winset had violated the schools standards of conduct and civility and characterized the professor's actions as discriminatory.
Creative works
Amongst various articles and essays, in the mid-90s1990s
File:1990s decade montage.png|From left, clockwise: The Hubble Space Telescope floats in space after it was taken up in 1990; American F-16s and F-15s fly over burning oil fields and the USA Lexie in Operation Desert Storm, also known as the 1991 Gulf War; The signing of the Oslo Accords on...
Winset developed the comic strip “The Incredible Dreamworld of . . .”, which was produced in a variety of media and forms. In addition to print, this may have included graffiti and guerrilla art similar to Banksy’s work. The strip’s main characters were “furries” along with students and faculty at a mythical “York Polytechic Institute” inspired by WPI
Worcester Polytechnic Institute
Worcester Polytechnic Institute is a private university located in Worcester, Massachusetts, in the United States.Founded in 1865 in Worcester, WPI was one of the United States' first engineering and technology universities...
, where Winset attended in Civil Engineering
Civil engineering
Civil engineering is a professional engineering discipline that deals with the design, construction, and maintenance of the physical and naturally built environment, including works like roads, bridges, canals, dams, and buildings...
.