Amarna, one of the College's two coed undergraduate societies, was formed in 1994 with the goal of offering a place where men and women could interact comfortably. So it funny -- if not a bit ironic -- that in the almost three years since, the organization's make-up has become overwhelmingly female.
Currently, Amarna has 30 female and 10 male members on campus. But although this gender disparity is something the organization would like to alter, the members are not very concerned in the grand scheme of things.
"To nonmembers, the numbers seem skewed and problematic. To members of the house who know the dynamics and have been talking about this for a while, it does not seem to be the biggest problem we could face," Amarna Vice-President Anat Levtov '98 said.
Levtov noted that originally, there were more men than women in the organization, and that the composition of the group tends to "ebb and flow with the campus."
"We would certainly welcome more male members, but we value each and every person who joins," Levtov said.
The disproportionate number of women is the result of several factors.
The anxiety some women have towards the Panhellenic rush process may contribute to Amarna's large number of women. Some women "drop out of rush, looking for something different," Levtov said.
Because more men seem to not be put off by fraternity rush, fewer of them turn to Amarna immediately.
Differing attitudes toward the idea of a co-ed group may be another contributing factor, Levtov added. To women, a co-ed society is often a chance to "prove their worth," whereas men often see it as a "step down," she said.
Because Amarna is not a Greek society, and has no formal rush or pledge period, students can join whenever they want to.
Levtov said "anyone" can join "any time, any term, anywhere."
Because there is no rush period, many men join Amarna after their sophomore fall, during their sophomore summer or even their junior year.
Amarna membership chair Caroline Timbers '98 said it is sometimes difficult for some students to decide to make the "big leap" out of the College's Greek system. Amarna encourages prospective members to take time to think about joining.
Timbers said Amarna wants people to "feel strongly before they join.
"Our idea, with respect to gender, is that it's better to have one great guy that's really dedicated to Amarna than 20 guys who are just in for fun," Timbers said.
Timbers added that Amarna worries less about numbers than a Greek house would.
Amarna recently held an open house and dance party to attract new membership. Currently, there are two men who are "seriously thinking about" joining Amarna, Levtov said.
Scott Rankin '98, a member of Amarna, said he "wishes there were more guys" in the organization, but does not feel discomforted by the ratio of men to women.
Dave Markham '97 concurs. He had no plans to join a fraternity when he came to Dartmouth because he had attended an all-male high school. He said the gender imbalance is only a "small problem," and that the organization is looking for more men.
Amarna was founded in January 1994. It was the second of the College's two undergraduate societies to be formed. Panarchy, the other undergraduate society, was formed the previous fall.
It was founded by a group of seven students led by Christine Carter '94 and Duncan Hodge '94. All but two of the seven founders were former fraternity or sorority members who had left their organizations.
