Transforming Trinity College Into the Colossus of Colleges
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A Tale of Trinity: Transforming Trinity College Into the Colossus of Colleges Written from the Perspectives of Current Trinity College Students 1 “Fortune favors the bold.”—Horace. 2 “The intelligence suffers today automatically in consequence of the attack on all authority, advantage, or privilege. These things are not done away with, it is needless to say, but numerous scapegoats are made of the less politically powerful, to satisfy the egalitarian rage awakened.” —Wyndham Lewis 3 Our Letter to You Dear members of the Trinity Community: We are Brain Trust, an organization dedicated to expose the truth at Trinity. As of now, we do not believe that the school is heading in the right direction. Likewise, we have written our response to President Jones’ “White Papers” as to what can be done to make Trinity a better place. We hope you take heed to these suggestions. Until next time, Trustees of the Brain Trust— Mister Quintus George Adam Mister John Rogers T Winthrop Orwell Smith John Mister George Adam Mister T Quintus Winthrop Rogers Orwell Smith 4 Forward A simple letter, bearing warm wishes of admission into Trinity College, marks the culmination of a four year odyssey of high school academic achievement, industrious diligence, and, most importantly, high hopes for a bright future. As members of the Trinity community— whether be current student, alumni, or attendee—we can reminiscence about that key moment where that one admission packet opened those coveted gates into Trinity College. Yet, as the gates swung open, each of us had anxious questions about Trinity College: How rigorous will my freshman year be? Which classes should I take? Should I partake in extra-circulars? Will I fit into the campus culture? As one of the great milestones in life, we have come to expect College to a period of tremendous personal growth, a journey from our teenage years into adulthood. In essence, society has mythologized the college into the “lifetime panacea.”1 It may a critical period where 1 Andrew Delbanco, College: What it Was, Is, and Should Be , (Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press, 2012) 5 we cement our philosophical, political, and religious beliefs. From our picture perfect college dream, we have grown to anticipate that during our college years we find our true purpose in life: a self-satisfying career. It is true that freshman year is an adjustment process; it is the first out of the next four years in which we make Trinity College our new home. As a home, we expect College to be a safe place: to study, to make lifelong friends, to learn the breadth and depth of meaningful knowledge, and to find our passions and personal pursuits.2 Yet, a simple evaluation of the college myth may cut short those picture-perfect dreams. Throughout the course of your four College years at Trinity, you may have noticed that your high expectations of the College have been cut short. If you are a current freshman or perspective freshman, then prepare for a reality check. Your first week as a freshman may appear magical, but that fairytale bubble is soon to pop. As an institution that markets itself as a bastion of collegiality and traditions, such claims fall short. Don’t let the glossy catalog and banal tour guides fool you’ll into “drinking the Kool- aid.3” Frankly, as writers of the Trinity Papers, we believe that the administration is so entrenched with their ivory-towered vision that they don’t give a shit about the students. Throughout our time at Trinity, we noticed that the half-witted administration would do one of three things: 1) scapegoat innocents, 2) pass the blame, and 3) turn a blind eye to corruption. 2 Ken Robinson, The Element: How Finding Your Passion Changes Everything, ( N e w York, NY: Penguin, 2009). 3 For those not familiar with “drinking the Kool-aid”, it is coined after the 1978 Jonestown massacre; it is a phrase to suggest that one has mindlessly adopted the dogma of a group without understanding the ramifications. 6 We are Brain Trust, and frankly, we don’t give a shit what “they”—the administration— will think of us. We are the honey badger. To prove our point, enjoy this meme. We are writing the Trinity Papers because we truly care about the wellbeing of other Trinity students. Likewise, we have created the blog Brain Trust at Trinity to denounce of the corruption and bullshit that happens at the school. We will provide you real unfettered news of what really happens at Trinity. Instead of the happy-go-lucky, sugar-coated bullshit that they scoff down your throats, we will provide you with the truth. And let me tell you, the truth isn’t always pretty. Simply put, we are tired of being suppressed and oppressed by the ungrateful overlords. If the administration thinks that they can squash us, then think again. We shall come back with vengeance. "Let the truth be permitted to reach your ears, if only by the hidden path of silent literature. She asks no mercy in her case, because she does not feel any surprise either as to her circumstances...One thing only does she eagerly desire in the meantime, namely that she be not condemned without being known... We are not a new philosophy but a divine revelation. That's why you can't just exterminate us; the more you kill the more we are. The blood of the martyrs is the seed of the church. You praise those who endured pain and death - so long as they aren't the minority! [Their] cruelties merely prove our innocence of the crimes [they] charge against us. When [they] recently to handed a Christian girl over to a brothel-keeper rather than to the lions, they showed they knew we counted chastity dearer than life." 7 Tertullian's Apologeticum (Source: 1926 A. Souter Translation) Well then enough ranting for one forward, let us move into the heart of our papers. We will use a simple methodology where we will decry a problem (in the common tongue, “bitching about the problem”) and then offer our suggestions. Fair enough? 8 Table of Contents Our Letter to You ....................................................................................................................................... 4 Forward ....................................................................................................................................................... 5 Academics .................................................................................................................................................. 11 Facilitating Greater Professor-Student Interaction Revising the Core Curtailing Professorial Ideologues Administrative Reform ............................................................................................................................. 18 Re-evaluating the Mission Statement Cutting College Costs Who is that Dean? What is their purpose? How many do we have? Infrastructure ............................................................................................................................................ 21 Safe Buildings: Working Buildings, Not Aesthetics Resource Allocation .................................................................................................................................. 21 Connecting Trinity Alumni with Trinity Freshman Competitive Student Grants More Compassionate, Smarter Student Government Funding Post-Trinity: The Need for More Student Fellowships Safety .......................................................................................................................................................... 25 Dealing with the Hazards of Hartford Security Kiosques Student Life ............................................................................................................................................... 26 The New Camp Trin Trin: Reforming the Social Policy & Expanding Greek Life 9 Reviving Collegiate Traditions Technology ................................................................................................................................................. 28 Modernizing Trinity into the Twenty-First Century Student Grants for Research and Development Works Cited………………………………………………………………………………………………31 Support Us……………………………………………………………………………………..…………33 10 Academics By Mister Rogers “A child miseducated is a child lost.”—President John Fitzgerald Kennedy If a liberal arts education opens doors to new opportunities and experiences, Trinity College becomes a quintessential institution fostering the scholarship of humanities, social sciences, and to a lesser degree, science and engineering. By itself, a liberal arts education cannot fill the intellectual gap between the world of ivory towers and main street firms.4,5,6 At liberal arts schools, we are taught to think broadly, yet we are not taught to apply theories to the real world. Although a gap remains between the world of academia and the business world, a bridge can be constructed between both worlds. In order for liberal arts students to reap the benefits of the job market, liberal arts students must strive to get the best of both academic and real world experiences. 7 Trinity College must serve to bridge the gap between the scholarly community and the real world. There is a real need for students to become to the dynamic world of business, we become more aware of a global 4 Derek Bok, Our Underachieving C olleges: A Candid Look at How Much Students Learn and Why They Should Be Learning More , (Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 2005). 5 D e r e k B o k , Beyond the Ivory Tower, (Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 1 9 8 4