While many of us arrive as freshmen with an undying passion for community service and nonprofit work, we are quickly brainwashed with the Ivy elite's capitalist expectations: Our learning experience is limited to the how-to-become-successful indoctrination that takes place within the Dartmouth bubble, protecting us from real life. Regrettably, the Dartmouth environment teaches us to become selfish individualists in a world where true values of life seem to have faded into oblivion.
Most students welcomed this spring break as a long-awaited pause from overheated brain activity during finals and a chance to recuperate from stress and all-nighters. The intensity of a 10-week term wears students out to the extent that extracurricular activities are considered bonuses rather than cornerstones in our education.
There were, however, students who viewed spring break as an opportunity to go on alternative Tucker-sponsored trips to apply their acquired knowledge in real-life situations. Rather than lying on the beach or eating mom's home-cooked food, they chose to challenge themselves emotionally and physically in order to make a difference and to witness America through a different lens.
Alternative Spring Break trips offer students profound opportunities to engage in community service throughout the country. I personally decided to join eight Dartmouth students in New Orleans to perform community planning, and it was the wisest decision I've made at Dartmouth so far. As one of my teammates pointed out, the trip served as a reality check -- both as a reminder that we came to Dartmouth to one day make a difference in the world, and as a wake-up call to stay true to our beliefs in the midst of exams, internship applications and reckless drinking.
Moreover, engaging in community service is, in my opinion, the best way to deal with stress, anxiety and pressure to succeed in an individualistic society. Unlike binge drinking, volunteering serves our emotional wellbeing and gives us a long-lasting incentive to continue to work hard. The satisfaction of having accomplished something that 'matters' is unrivaled, not to mention the feeling of giving back to a community that is considerably less privileged than we are.
More importantly, what we receive in return for our work vastly exceeds the effort we put into it. Being forced to face ongoing issues outside the Dartmouth bubble gives us a more realistic perspective on life, and it helps us understand that receiving a C on an exam isn't the end of the world after all.
Looking at community service from an elitist vantage point, I am surprised to see that students don't value community service more. In a high-achieving society, a high GPA and some prestigious position within the school's student council will not make you unique, and it is not enough to compete for the most sought-after jobs on the market. Believe it or not, but being street-smart and willing to expose yourself to new challenges will look better in the eyes of the corporate interviewer than straight As.
Liberal arts offers us a greater overall academic experience by providing us with opportunities to explore new fields of academic interest. However, it fails to emphasize the role of extra-curricular activities and how they affect our personal development. Don't get me wrong: The problem is not the absence of community service at Dartmouth. In fact, there are loads of opportunities to stay engaged and volunteer at Dartmouth. The issue arises, however, when community service is made a second priority.
I am well aware that we invest over $50,000 annually to study, but the concept of learning must be expanded to include some basic values of life. Discrediting community work at a liberal arts institution is hypocritical, as the idea of developing our minds through a variety of fields of study should emphasize some basic understanding of the world. The lack of exposure to social issues gives us a distorted image of the world, one in which life merely revolves around money and success.
Dartmouth should focus more on the personal development and maturity of its students, and if that entails making Alternative Spring Break trips or regular community service a requirement, then so be it. As long as community service is 'encouraged' rather than compulsory, it will remain a second priority. Making service a graduation requirement would be a first step in changing students' attitudes regarding extracurricular engagement, and it would rightfully recognize service as complementary to in-class learning.
Knowledge can only be achieved through academic and emotional understanding, and Dartmouth has the resources to provide both. Once the balance is broken, we lose perspective on who we are, why we are here and what the real world looks like. If you, like many other Dartmouth students, experience any or all of these symptoms, go and sign up for the next Tucker trip -- it will change you.
