At last night's information session about his Dartmouth Experience plan, Dean of the College Lee Pelton told a group of 25 students that the goal of the plan is to better integrate intellectual and social life at the College.
The plan renovates the East Wheelock cluster and it also establishes a nearby residence that will house a faculty associate for the cluster, a cluster dean and $25,000 for programming.
"We've been talking about something like this for about three years," Pelton said, adding that he has discussed his idea with faculty, students and alumni.
Last summer, Pelton received the approval of the Board of Trustees to pursue the plan and find the necessary money and an appropriate site for the program. The Trustees voted last term to implement the plan in the fall.
Pelton said the East Wheelock cluster was designated as the site for the program because it was the most cost-effective way to meet the demands of the new program.
Pelton said the College considered each residence hall and concluded that the East Wheelock cluster required the fewest number of renovations to accommodate the plan.
Minor alterations to the cluster and its landscaping will occur this summer, Pelton said.
The residence at 13 East Wheelock Street will be converted to accommodate a senior faculty associate who will work closely with the students living in the cluster, Pelton said.
The new program provides for the appointment of a cluster dean who will have an office in Brace Commons, Pelton said.
Although Pelton said he believes "that the program will work," he emphasized that the project is experimental and will require evaluation after its inception.
Pelton said ideally the group of students living in the cluster will be a cross-section of the Dartmouth student body.
The goal of this new living option is to create a "learning environment" with reduced barriers between faculty and students and with greater integration of intellectual and social life at Dartmouth, Pelton said.
If the program is successful, it could possibly spread to other residence halls, Pelton said.
Chris Warren '99 said Pelton's idea will provide students with the "opportunity to integrate intellectual life with residential life," a facet of college life that he feels is lacking at Dartmouth.
Ben Bawden '99 agreed. He said, "Pelton has an awesome idea."
Dean of Residential Life Mary Turco, who was also present at the meeting, answered questions from students concerning the housing application process.
According to a pamphlet handed out at the meeting, students' randomly-assigned housing priority numbers will be used to assign them to specific rooms once they have been selected for the program.
