With good weather, enthusiastic hosts and no significant run-ins with the law, Dean of Admissions Karl Furstenberg called this weekend's Dimensions of Dartmouth "as good a weekend as we've had."
The main goal of Dimensions -- to showcase Dartmouth and convince prospective members of the Class of 2008 that their futures lie in Hanover -- seemed to have been realized, according to Casey Ley '07, a student host. His prospective student had been considering both University of California-Berkeley and Dartmouth before Dimensions, but had squarely chosen Dartmouth by the time he left Hanover.
"Coming here, he had no idea what to expect," said Ley. "Being here with all the prospie events showed him a side of the school he hadn't seen before. He left thinking the he was going to come to Dartmouth."
Furstenberg echoed this thought, saying the weekend was very effective in helping prospectives decide in favor of Dartmouth.
"I was there when the buses were leaving this morning," said Furstenberg, "and my sense is a lot of people are going to choose Dartmouth."
"The way that Dartmouth students rally for Dimensions," Furstenberg continued, "the energy and spirit in putting on panels and performances really impressed the visitors. People kept saying to me, 'This is such a friendly place.'"
The weekend's events seemed to play a large role in its success. Tim Fallon '04, was a participant in the Admissions Office's top-secret debut event, a "Class of 2008 Welcome," Friday in Collis Common Ground.
The event, a series of songs about popular things at Dartmouth such as BlitzMail, was performed by approximately 30 upperclassmen, and was intended to be a "fun evening to show prospective students how excited current students are about Dartmouth," said Fallon.
Fallon said the upperclass students were pleased with the turnout. Enough people attended to fill Collis Common Ground, and there were a good number of upperclassmen in attendance as well.
Despite the apparent success of the event this year, however, it is not yet known if the "Class Welcome" will become a staple of the Dimensions weekend.
"As to whether we'll keep doing it, it really depends on what admissions thought about it," Fallon said.
Unlike in years past, the weekend was devoid of run-ins with Safety and Security and the Hanover Police Department, which added to the halcyon nature of this year's Dimensions.
Dispatcher Timothy Goodwin of Hanover Police said that according to a police log, "there didn't seem that there were any issues with prospective students."
College Proctor Harry Kinne, who directs Safety and Security was unavailable for comment.
Having successfully concluded yet another Dimensions weekend, it is time to look ahead to next year, said Furstenberg. Five admissions officers will be on the road tomorrow to begin recruiting students for the Class of 2009.
"Everyone worked very hard this weekend," said Furstenberg. "We were definitely open for business."
