The ongoing Association of Alumni elections, which end June 5, have drawn more student involvement than most -- with students circulating letters, authoring editorials and reaching out to alumni in order to affect the vote -- but there are similarities between the student movements in this election and those in recent ones.
The most widespread student movement comes from the pro-parity, pro-lawsuit side. Joe Braunreuther '08 and Diane Ellis '08 co-wrote a letter on behalf of Dartmouth Parity, the alumni organization that is running the anti-slate candidates. Joseph Malchow '08, Zak Moore '09 and Jacob Baron '10 write for Dartblog, a prominent Dartmouth student-run blog founded by Malchow that supports the lawsuit. Emily Esfahani-Smith, editor-in-chief of The Dartmouth Review, has argued in support of the lawsuit in editorials. James Bleuer '08 and Alex Felix '08 wrote a cartoon in this newspaper that mocked Bonnie Lam '10, a vocal student opponent of the lawsuit.
Like in recent alumni elections, the student movement opposed to the College administration is dominated by junior and senior men who are members of the Phrygian Society, the male secret society which pledged "to fight the heavy hand of the administration" in a document obtained by The Dartmouth, and which claims Braunreuther, Malchow, Moore, Bleuer and Felix as members.
According to several sources, the College has taken notice and keeps a list of known Phyrgian members, although Vice President of Alumni Relations David Spalding '76, a member of the Association executive committee who does not support the lawsuit and who is running again in this election, said that the office does not keep lists of student groups' memberships.
An undated letter from the Phrygian Society to select male alumni said the group "plans to call attention to the unfortunately diminished Dartmouth spirit by authoring articles in local papers, actively researching the College's past and personally passing down Dartmouth traditions through the years ..."
Several Phrygian members have used online and print forums to support the pro-parity movement at the College.
Dartblog features a series of articles on the College's "Board-packing plan" and includes entries by Moore.
"The Board-packing slate wants all the trustees to think alike, to think like them," Moore wrote on May 6. "The pro-parity slate wants to preserve the right of all Dartmouth alumni to give their input and opinions and suggestions and criticism through the democratic ballot box."
Phrygian members have also used The Dartmouth to make their opinions known. BlarFlex, a comic strip by Bleuer and Felix, attacked Lam after she had circulated a letter and petition opposing the Association's lawsuit.
Bleuer and Felix had joined The Dartmouth at the beginning of Spring term, when Felix asked if he could leave his last name out of the byline in case the strip offended anyone.
Students, alumni and faculty later criticized the comic for being racist, sexist and homophobic. The Dartmouth subsequently discontinued the comic and the authors were fired.
A post on Dartblog also criticized the cartoon, with Moore adding that the cartoon's "message against Board-packing should not get lost."
Felix later sent an apology to the campus in an e-mail.
After Lam's letter circulated among students, a second petition in support of pro-lawsuit Association candidates began to circulate. Numerous e-mails sent to students by Braunreuther and Ellis included a letter titled, "Yes: We Want to Preserve Democracy at Dartmouth." The letter, written by "current Dartmouth students from diverse corners of campus," decried the Board's plans.
"It is unpardonable that the Board continues to fight a bitter, expensive lawsuit that tarnishes the name of Dartmouth throughout the media when the alumni and undergraduate community have clearly and passionately spoken out AGAINST the Board-Packing scheme, AGAINST crushing parity on the board of Trustees, AGAINST ending democracy at Dartmouth," Ellis wrote in an e-mail to campus in April.
The attached letter was also sent to alumni and the Board, Ellis' message said. In the forward to the letter sent to alumni, Braunreuther and Ellis thanked "the Dartmouth Parity slate for aiding us in mailing this letter," while adding "that this initiative has been entirely student driven from beginning to end."
When contacted by The Dartmouth, Braunreuther and Ellis refused to be interviewed in person and insisted on having any questions sent to them over BlitzMail.
Braunreuther, Felix, Ellis, Malchow and Moore -- along with Phrygian members Alex Abate '09, Andrew Ballentine '09, Chris Brouwer '09, David Hollenberg '09, Kevin Ellis '09, Jamal Sabky '09, Mike Russell '09, Nate Niparko '09, Andrew Berry '08, Eric Crawford '08, David Lindenbaum '08, John Mitchell '08, Will Ryan '08 and Rob Shames '08 -- signed the petition against the Board's changes. Sources say that signatories Alex Nomitch '09, Sam Fisher '08 and Robbie Lim '08 are also members of the society.
Niparko is one of The Dartmouth's current Sports Editors, and Mitchell is a former Sports Editor for The Dartmouth. Diane Ellis is unrelated to members Kevin Ellis and Michael Ellis '06.
In addition to signing Braunreuther's letter, Abate also wrote a letter to the editor of The Dartmouth on May 9 criticizing an opinion piece written by John Mathias '69, the candidate for president of the Association who opposes the lawsuit. Abate's letter stated that the column "insults the intelligence of both students and alumni."
Staff reporter William Schpero contributed to the reporting of this article.
