President James Jones of Trinity College issued a white paper and used the quote, “Everything changes except the need for change” (Jones 34). The quote may first have one believe that change is not worth the effort but the quote is saying the exact opposite. This quote is the answer to many if the questions that student leaders on campus struggle with every day; “How am I supposed to get people to come?” “Why does it matter if no one else cares?” Trying to get people to come to cultural events is constant struggle on campus. Student leaders are constantly trying to figure out creative events that will bring in more student participation. There will always be a need for change, there is doubt about that but what is there to change on Trinity’s campus? The one problem to focus on is the issue of race and social class on campus; it is not often brought in small conversation but in large forums when there is an incident. That’s the problem race and social class are not talked about until something bad happens.
Race on campus is a problem because we make it one. The fact that people are taught to accept different people’s races instead of the person themselves. Although race plays a factor in a person’s upbringing it does not always define a person. People on campus are taught to watch what they say, to not ask ignorant questions or to not say anything at all. I believe that is the problem, everyone is taught to keep it inside, but how do you learn without asking any questions? The problem on campus is that there are many people who are ignorant to other races and are taught not to ask but to just accept without reason. It’s hard to accept the person if you are not able to see past their skin color. Humans are naturally curios, and often one would not be able to know anything without experience or asking questions. People are scared to ask questions for fear of being judged so they remain ignorant, which is the cause of most racist comments.
Race is such a big deal on campus but it is not often spoken about. It can be the white elephant in the room at times. In the documentary by Alfonso Bui (Trinity Class of ‘08), Some Place I Call Home, there were multiple forums documented in 2007 where students spoke out about the hate on Trinity campus and the possible solutions. When students spoke about the problems and solutions they spoke only about the Fraternities on campus. During the forums there were many people that spoke about Trinity and its problems on a broad scale, the school as a whole. But as the forums continued people began to analyze the root of the problem and some began specifying where the problems were. Many students specified that it was the fraternities on campus, or they mentioned Vernon street as a whole, but when they mentioned Vernon street no one spoke about the cultural house; Vernon street was known only for the fraternities. There was no statement about the cultural houses on campus, which are located right next to the fraternities on Vernon Street. The main job of the cultural houses on campus is to spread awareness of different cultures and answer questions that may help lessen racial discrimination on campus. One student said that the fraternities were the center of Trinity that brings everyone together as well as the most vital part of Vernon. The cultural houses were not even mentioned as a part of Trinity’s campus. The lack of acknowledgment shows that the cultural houses are not doing their jobs; they are not even being recognized on campus. There needs to be a general agreement that there is a problem and then the cultural houses can become the popular solution. It is hard to force a person to learn about a culture unbeknownst to them or where there is a general lack of interest. It is the hope of the cultural houses that people would attend in the hopes to learn new things about the specific culture affiliated with the house. But from experience people seem to just come for the food. They eat then they leave, often not caring to ask where the food has come from. It is then up to the cultural houses to find a medium where they don’t only enjoy themselves but learn something new as well.
Cultural houses are not exclusive at Trinity College they are done at many colleges around the country such as, University of Pennsylvania, Stanford, and Cornell. There was an article commenting on the addition of new cultural houses to Duke University which states, “Cultural houses have been successful at peer institutions, such as Stanford University, Cornell University and the University of Pennsylvania” (Koelsch). Although the institutions mentioned above are not a part of the NESCAC community they are institutions of higher learning. Many would say that you cannot compare a small liberal arts college to a large university but with this comparison this shows how far trinity has come. But this does not mean Trinity should stop, the presence of the houses is not enough they need to be more involved in the community. The cultural house’s location is on Vernon Street which is popular for its fraternity parties. It would help if the cultural houses were making their existence known on campus. There are many ways such as tabling at Mather Dining Hall. This is an easy way to let people on campus know about the existence of the cultural houses on campus. When I talked to some students about two months into the semester there were freshman who didn’t know there were cultural houses on campus let alone where they were. Freshmen are the easiest people to talk to because they are the most eager to learn about the campus. If there were information sessions that focused on the student activities and resources on campus there would be more opportunities for the houses on campus to make themselves known.
It is easy for frats to attract a crowd with alcohol and music; it’s hard to attract a crowd with any less than that. You can lead the horse to water but you can’t make them drink. But what the cultural houses need to do is make more events that happen on the main side of campus. Many dormitories are closer to Mather Dining Hall which is on the other side of campus when compared to the culture houses. If the culture houses would hold events in the spaces provided in Mather, Rittenburg Lounge and the Washington room, the horse wouldn’t have to go as far and may have more incentive to drink, or in other words attend an event. If you want to push someone past their comfort zone more often than not you must do the pushing yourself, you cannot rely on the person to do it themselves.
There needs to be more communication between the houses and other clubs and organizations on campus. Recently there has been more incentive for cultural houses to come together to create events to drawn in a different crowd, but if it’s not mandatory for the cultural houses or monitored by a superior there is plenty of room for failure. It should be mandatory for each culture house to plan an event with another club, organization, fraternity, or sorority at least once a semester. It is easy to suggest but it is the follow through that is often left behind. The multicultural affairs office needs to take more responsibility of the houses to ensure that they are doing their jobs, or to make sure they are getting the support they need to be successful. If the multicultural affairs office could be involved it would create a whole new networking system that could also include the faculty and admissions.
Sources:
Alfonso Bui (Trinity Class of ‘08), Some Place I Call Home, Kingsbridge Productions video, 2007,
Jones, James F. Jr., “To Reweave the Helices: Trinity’s DNA by Our Two-Hundredth Birthday” (2011). Trinity College Archives. `
Koelsch, Anna. “Three cultural houses form for Fall 2012 | The Chronicle.” Duke Chronicle. 10 Nov. 1930. Web. 1 Dec. 2011.
About the author: Saida Harpi attends Trinity College where she is a First Year. This article is based on her findings and research in her first year seminar “Color and Money” taught by Jack Dougherty.