Many of my fellow opinion columnists have decided to tackle national issues with the peculiar self-impression that they are experts. However even as a senior I claim no authoritative voice on health care or presumption of expertise regarding terrorism. I prefer to keep my articles closer to home. As a student deeply involved with Greek Life at Dartmouth, I intend to share my opinion about something local and relevant the work of Fouad Saleet, Associate Director of Greek Letter Organizations and Societies, during his time here.
Unfortunately, this article is a final nod to the tenure of Mr. Saleet, often called "Fu" for short. (It's taken me two-and-a-half years of working with him to finally feel comfortable making the column's titular joke.) A dedicated member of the Dartmouth community, Fouad is leaving us for Colgate University in Hamilton, NY. Let this be a 700-word eulogy for Fouad's Dartmouth career and to add a touch of the maudlin my own heartfelt address to the departed.
"My first memory of Fouad was that he wouldn't hug anyone. He said he didn't do' hugging," Ruth Kett, administrative assistant at the Office Residential Life said. However, behind this early refusal of physical intimacy was an administrator who often worked to help students diligently and with empathy.
"Fouad and I have known each other for seven years and we've worked with UGAs, designed programs, driven through snow-storms, played softball and most importantly argued about everything from whether or not God is real to the difference between leaders and managers," Office of Pluralism and Leadership's Samantha Ivery said. It was this kind of personal investment in every interaction that made Fouad a Dartmouth gem for students and colleagues.
What distinguished Fouad for me was the repartee we shared, both during my internship at ORL and during my tenure with the Inter-Fraternity Council. It was the first time I felt academically challenged by someone outside of the faculty an adult who legitimately cared about my opinion, but was willing to question and dispute it. His hardball style as a skilled debater of college policies and life made Fouad stand out to fellow students, and allowed me to see him, in many senses, as a friend and mentor. Through working with Fouad, I have come to see that intellectual debate should extend to social and extracurricular life as much as academics, and that personal development often relies on the hours outside of the classroom. Aside from my sycophantic goodbye to a friend, this is a lesson that I think we should all consider with more gravity.
As a whole, the "college experience" suggests intellectual growth and personal reflection. In the classroom, professors may tell students that some of their individual contributions are not valid, or that they may be fundamentally wrong. But how often has a professor questioned your personal values as a peer, not just as an instructor? Where are your private feelings challenged, jeopardized and refined? Being made to feel nave, and understanding that you can be wrong these are more important lessons than any others.
Now that Fu is leaving, I want to preach his gospel. Consider the value of the adults who work for Dartmouth, who, even in a professional capacity, are able to question your principles. The invincibility of adolescence should not hold us back from the humble study of our own selves. At this point in our lives, reassessing our own assumptions as straight or skewed could form us into exemplary leaders and role models. But we need to be challenged. Students, find a challenger. Faculty and staff, find and challenge us.
In a message to her colleagues, Dean of Greek Life Deb Carney said: "I will truly miss the bond that Fu and I have developed these past years. I wish him all the best as he begins a new chapter in his life." I, and many others, do as well. Goodbye, Fu.
