Spring term is almost over and for the Freshman class the first year experience is almost at an end. Just another week of classes, and another week of dreaded final examinations and most of us will be headed back home for a well-deserved summer vacation after a relatively quiet academic year.
For a freshman like myself, the time has come to take some time off the study of exchange rate fluctuations, the intricacies of regression analysis and the Arab-Israeli conflict to reflect on my intellectual, spiritual and personal growth after my first year at Dartmouth. Two crucial questions should now arise in the minds of the members of the soon-to-be sophomore Class of 1996:
1) What have I learned from my first year experience at Dartmouth, both in and outside the classroom?
2) Have I become a more enlightened and tolerant human being? In other words, has my first year education produced a worthier person than the one who arrived in Hanover for Orientation Week last September?
Answers to both of these questions are difficult to find, especially when one realizes that although most of us have become more proficient in the natural and social sciences as well as in the humanities and foreign languages, and have learned a handful of fascinating political, scientific, historical and philosophical concepts, we are practically the same individuals who avidly explored the Dartmouth campus during the first weeks of the Fall term.
Today, there is only one difference: we are aware of almost everything there is to know about Dartmouth's daily life and have adapted ourselves to this lifestyle, one of intense academic demands, a limited and dissatisfying social scene and the endemic divisiveness of the student body among conservatives and liberals, revolutionaries and pragmatists, blacks and whites.
One thing we have learned during our first year at Dartmouth is the fact that regardless of the enlightenment we have received through the study of the ethical works of Aristotle, the political theories of Machiavelli, the inspirational prose of Kahlil Gibran, the moving poetry of Robert Frost and the theories of Galileo, Copernicus and Albert Einstein, we are still a long way from becoming the idealistic benefactors of humanity this College intends to produce.
It is sad to discover that most of my fellow freshmen are yet to understand the true meaning of a liberal arts education and the mission of the College, which is to enlighten the human spirit through study, investigation and artistic expression.
At a time when the pressures of final examinations, essays and projects push us to the brink of a nervous breakdown and keep our attention focused on our academic performance, we should all take a study break to analyze one important reality:
Are we studying to learn new things or just to keep a high GPA? Is it our aim to become fulfilled individuals capable of stirring revolutions, changing the course of history and becoming role models for future generations or are we simply trying our best to impress a graduate school admissions officer or a representative from IBM three years from now with an array of straight A's?
We have a great responsibility as inheritors of the world of the 21st century to exploit the opportunities a place like Dartmouth has to offer and let the knowledge we acquire transform us into better human beings. Let this knowledge not be a source of disgust and anxiety to be forgotten hours after the final exam, but let it be a catalyst of spiritual rebirth and personal growth.
What matters here is that you have learned, explored and matured. Whether or not you possess a good transcript is of secondary importance. Grades are nothing but a bunch of letters scattered on a piece of paper which give a most limited perspective of a person's talents and abilities. It is more important that you become worthy individuals capable of making an impact on society.
The task for this summer is to reflect on how you can change yourself, redefine your priorities and contribute to the improvement of the quality of life both in your college and in society at large. Don't let that C in statistics or chemistry bring you down for it is just one puny mark that is not going to keep you from achieving your goals if you have strong determination and a good heart! Let us come back next fall as transformed sophomores eager to reach higher grounds.
I salute the members of the Class of 1993 and congratulate them on their immense achievements. To all my friends in the senior class, may the future fare you well. I shall miss you very much.
