Winter term was highlighted by events like the provost's resignation and the College's decision to lock dorms.
Provost resigns
College Provost Susan Prager announced that she will step down in July after two years as Dartmouth's second highest administrator, citing her interests in pursuing a broader leadership role at another institution.
While Prager's short stay as provost is not unprecedented, it did spark some speculation that she was frustrated after the first phase of a project she had been working on since last April was completed. The project. The preliminary version of the College's academic planning report, drafted under Prager's direction, was met with strong disapproval from some members of the faculty.
Door Locking
After two separate incidents in which female students were walked in on by unidentified males while they were taking showers, Dean of Residential Life Martin Redman announced the College would begin locking the doors to campus residence halls within the year.
Similar proposals made by the College over the last few years had been met with largely negative reactions from the student body.
Dean Redman elected for a system that would admit students when their cards came in close proximity to a reader, rather than a cheaper but less convenient two-key system. Dartmouth is the only Ivy League school to not already have a door locking a system.
Psi U Controversy
Psi Upsilon fraternity became the center of controversy when a female student said a few students standing on the Psi U lawn taunted her by chanting "Wah-hoo-wah, scalp 'em, scalp 'em."
As the student approached the house, the chanting stopped. Then the Psi U members started again, this time chanting, "Wah-hoo-wah, scalp those bitches."
Saying she felt both shocked and disgusted, the student instinctively yelled at the house, "Psi U is so cool!"
Along with countless editorial responses, the incident resulted in a Level I adjudication hearing for Psi U, the lower of two possible levels.
Coeds Consider Secession
At least two of Dartmouth's three coeducational Greek organizations were considering seceding from the Greek system -- a move that could have serious implications for the future of the groups and the Coed Fraternity Sorority system itself.
Some said that the coed organizations would more appropriately be listed along with undergraduate societies Amarna and Panarchy.
"I think right now a large part of it is they feel that the Greek system does not necessarily fit their needs," Coed Fraternity Sorority Council President Shihwan Chung '02 acknowledged. "Right now, they kind of feel like they're marginalized."
Applications Drop
This year the College received 9,700 applicants for the Class of 2005, which marks a significant decline from last year's applicant pool of 10,165.
Defending the decline, Dean of Admissions Karl Furstenberg said the drop may be due to "a sense among high school students that it is impossible to get into Ivy-quality schools."
However, most Ivy League schools noticed an increase in number of applications this year. Of the eight colleges in the Ivy League, Dartmouth and Brown were the only two that were known to have seen a decline -- Dartmouth's dropping much more significantly than Brown's.
