Last week, Serena Williams defeated Jelena Jankovic in the women's final of the U.S. Open to win her ninth singles Grand Slam title. As a result of her performance, she was awarded the number-one ranking, once again reaching the pinnacle of women's tennis. What we can learn from Serena, however, extends far beyond how to smack a tennis ball and how to scandalize tennis fans who think that the Open should adopt a stricter dress code, la Wimbledon.
On the day of the championship, The New York Times discussed the Williams sisters' choices to pursue activities outside of tennis while still playing in most Grand Slam tournaments. The Williamses hold a unique position -- for which they are often criticized -- among the most talented athletes of the world: They spend time that their peers use for extra training to nurture the interests that will shape their lives far longer than will their tennis careers, and then they, you know, win an occasional Olympic gold medal.
The Williams sisters are compelling role models for young athletes, but I also see their example as inherently related to our experience as Dartmouth students. The Times quotes the Williamses' sister, Isha Price, who makes the point that doing other things (Venus owns a design company and Serena is working on her acting career) keeps the two women grounded because "this thing [playing tennis] is not going to be your gig for life."
Applied to Dartmouth students, Price's comment would imply that extracurricular activities prepare us for a future when our academic careers are irrelevant to our professional lives. This statement is not true. Even though most of us are unlikely to continue our academic careers very far into adulthood, the skills we learn in class are supposed to be valuable for our entire careers as well as lives.
Instead, what I see in the Williams sisters' choices is a recognition of their need to explore their multifaceted personalities. I may sound like an admissions brochure, but it truly seems that Dartmouth students follow multiple passions at once -- more so than students elsewhere. We play varsity sports, we study abroad, we take pre-med classes and we are involved in campus groups, and we don't choose to define ourselves in strict "Mean Girls"-esque cliques.
Former tennis player Mary Carillo stated (in the Times) that athletes as incredibly talented as Serena and Venus Williams should not waste time and energy on outside pursuits. I am all for trying to be the best at something, but there is a good reason that neither Carillo nor any like-minded individuals will ever lead this College.
It is impossible to prove that having a fledgling acting career helped propel Serena to the top spot in women's tennis. The College, however, believes in the value of variety -- it upholds distributive and PE requirements and encourages students to pursue as wide of a range of interests as we please. This is where our Dean of Student Life comes in, and our president and the Board of Trustees. It is of the utmost importance that the College's leaders accommodate our need to explore our various interests while still maintaining Dartmouth's academic caliber. While we may not care about how we fared in the latest ranking, most of us attend Dartmouth because we want to compete among the world's best scholars -- with the freedom to choose our own paths therein.
As five of the eventual eight new trustees begin their tenure on the Board, it seems that the College kept a fairly even keel through the storm of governance debate, during which both sides fought over Dartmouth's educational philosophy. Maintaining a balance, though, is what Dartmouth is noted for: Dartmouth professors are renowned for their research -- with the assistance of the undergraduates they teach. Dartmouth students live in Hanover, New Hampshire -- but hail from all the states and many foreign countries. Dartmouth has taught foreign languages and cultures in the same white building for years -- but has the influence to send students on exchange terms to universities all over the world.
The Board has an especially important role this year. Over 75 percent of current Dartmouth students -- oh hey '12s, that includes you -- will begin next fall under a new president. We must find a successor who will carry the mantle of Dartmouth's balanced life into the future, supporting students' individual pursuits above and beyond our academic Grand Slams.
