Life at Dartmouth is great. But couldn't it be better?
Pressing issues surrounding the future of student life are frequently arising, and student response has been anything but enthusiastic.
We know the face of student life is changing. But it's still unclear as to what exactly the Student Life Initiative will lead us. The changes the SLI has brought have caused a great deal of reaction from the students. For example, the recent change by administration to implement walk-throughs in particular has brought the issue of change to the forefront.
In general, when the word "change" comes up, our reactions scatter. When we hear all this talk about change, we turn our heads, shut out our ears, block off our minds. Change is either happening too fast or too slow for people on campus. The truth is, change has been happening and how you feel about it has little effect compared to what you do about it.
The key we need to keep in mind here is that, change or no change, like or dislike, we need to start looking at who is doing the changing.
Allow me to elaborate.
This summer, and in the recent year, we've witnessed some top-down administrative-led change. Changes in social life, residential life student life. If you ask me, the reaction from the campus has been anything but receptive. There has been little communication with the students from the administration: little consideration, little trust, and all around, little leadership. I can outline to you precisely where and how they went wrong, but that's beside my point here. Essentially, these problems won't go away and this feeling of disapproval won't settle unless WE do something about it.
Let me bring this back to focus: I'm not here to criticize the administration. It's that I think we are focused sometimes too much on the changes themselves rather than actively making the changes ourselves. These "campus issues" are OUR problems, and it's truly up to us to take care of them. If your room is messy, your parents don't come to clean it. If you are hungry, they don't come to feed you.
Given that, it's time to reevaluate our leadership. Are we spoon-fed leaders? Can and do we have the will to take initiative and responsibility to shape Dartmouth life? It's time we pick up the spoon and start feeding ourselves -- feeding our needs on campus. The administration will help us cook, but we need to tell them what we like to eat and what we don't.
This summer, we have yet another chance to turn some things around, just like we do every term. We need to shift that cycle to a student-lead initiative where we create the change. One major way to do that is with new attitudes, pro-active plans, collaboration with administrators, and speaking up and out. It will be important to come together as a union of students to make important changes happen.
When dealing with change, it's your attitude that matters. We need to transform the attitude of leaders from being less reactive to becoming more creative. We need to support each other in shaping and realizing our interests to move forward. We also need to come to a common understanding.
Dartmouth is a great place, and while we are on campus, we're shaping its future, not by our dialogue, but by our actions. We choose with our feet what we support and take interest in, and what we do not.
We've all got problems, and issues, and all hell to deal with, but one thing is for sure: what you do here at Dartmouth affects the future. No doubt about it. If you have a problem with something here on campus don't think that it's just a part of the unfortunate changes at Dartmouth. Use your feet and your hands -- you have complete control over what you do, and if you keep the right attitude and the right frame of mind, you're on to something. We should always remember that every obstacle presents an opportunity to improve our condition.
That said, how will we accomplish all that I've outlined above? Allow me to offer you one solution: the heart and soul of what I'm getting at can be found at the Dartmouth Student Leaders Summit this upcoming Tuesday afternoon.
The Dartmouth Student Leaders Summit is completely run for the students and led by the students. It concerns the heart of student empowerment, and student voice: students only. The Summit is for all students: both leaders and those curious about leading. The more we get talking about student leadership, the more student voice will have value. Change on campus begins with a change of heart, a shift in attitude, to want to leave Dartmouth better than you found it.
Bottom line, I urge you to come to the Summit. You have nothing to lose. It's time to give the spoon back to the administration and show them we're able to feed ourselves. Now I would tell you there's free food, but that's not the point. The motivation for action on campus needs to be genuine, not for a free lunch. If you're hungry for constructive change, we'll appease your appetite.
