<p>NYC, the press may have mauled the facts/perspective of the story, but it's nevertheless annoying to see some folks dimiss your daughter's direct experience and impressions so casually. Yet I'd bet that some of the non-black individuals whom dismissed your opinion of Trinity's race relations could easily fit into the Chris Rock joke, to paraphrase; 'no white man in this audience would trade places with me, and I'm rich!'</p>
<p>NYC, no one is (or should be) trying to coerce you or D into changing your minds ... only a minority of those who tour will wind up at Trinity and every college knows that. I wish D good luck on her college search.</p>
<p>so, who will talk about the stabbing that happened at trinity, it's in the news, you can look up in the local papers as well. There seems to be a safety problem in there as well. I'd like to know what that's about...this is what I'm talking about when I say do your damn homework</p>
<p>why is there no safety in this campus, is it in the ghetto or something, because that's the type of stories you can expect, well, then again, I can't talk much, alot of universities are still in impoverished communities</p>
<p>You can be sure prospective students and their parents will be watching what steps Trinity takes to assure student safety.</p>
<p>Unfortunately these things can and do happen in urban colleges and especially in a city as poor as Hartford but if you look at the numbers on trincoll.edu one sees that the violent crime rate on campus is actually pretty low. This was an isolated incident that occured at an off-campus fraternity. We have occasional muggings, sure, but this is the first time in my three years that I can remember anything violent like this happening.</p>
<p>Jtvoyager, I don't feel "coerced," but I do feel, as Lake Wash stated, that D's observations have been dismissed - - and somewhat insulted my your need to advise me of the obvious (only a fraction of those who tour enroll - - what the point of that statement?). </p>
<p>What a prospect sees on the tour is what s/he sees; if a prospect discounts or disregards the negative, the tour becomes nothing but a promo for the college. And if one tours, in part, to judge the "feel" of the college, why ignore the fact that you don't "feel" comfortable on campus (remember, D's observations included current studentstour guide and an admissions officer, not just other prospects). </p>
<p>You like your college, you don't think there's a race problem. I suspect the URM students on have a diff view (as does the college itselv, based on its hiring of K. Spurlock-Evans at the senior admin level). In any event, D was admitted EDI to her first-choice sch (w/ generous fin aid) so this is all academic for me.</p>
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<p>Unfortunate about the mugging. I agree that such incidents occasionally occur everywhere. What D sensed was Trin's view of the community that surrounds the school as particularly threatening b/c it is black. I believe she felt that the area was characterized as "the ghetto" erroneously and too often. </p>
<p>As a friend of mine, who attend Brown once noted, poor White areas (such as the one then surrounding the Brown campus) were never preceived to be as dangerous as poor black communities - - even when the crime stats proved the black communities to be safer in general (and even safter for Whites since most of the cime in black neighborhoods was black on black). My White friends from NYC were always amazed by how easily the presence of black faces transformed an otherwise working-class neighborhood into "the ghetto."</p>
<p>I also found this to be true when I attended law school. Students were warned to avoid Roxbury, but Harvard Sq was, per capita, the scene of many more violent incidents (particularly incidents of rape). I never, however, heard a Harvard prospect or guide voice concern regarding the safety of the surrounding area.</p>
<p>I have to concur on the crime issue. The Trinity campus is no more dangerous than any other college located less than five minutes from an interstate highway. In fact, there's no law that says the perp has to even be from Hartford; in less than an hour by car anyone can get from one end of the state to the other with no problem.</p>
<p>Still, as the article revealed, these things tend to happen as the result of someone letting down their guard as a party kicks into high gear. Students have no business vouching for guests they don't really know.</p>
<p>I had heard that the campus was lovely but that Hartford... well not so much. ( this had nothing to do with it being a minority area, because, I had no idea that the area outside of Trinity was considered "black" ) I just assumed because it was an urban area that there would be more crime. Are the things to do on campus?</p>
<p>"Chris Rock joke, to paraphrase; 'no white man in this audience would trade places with me, and I'm rich!'"</p>
<p>p.s. I am a white woman and I would trade places with Chris Rock in a MINUTE! ;)</p>
<p>Hartford is about 40 percent Hispanic and 40 percent black. The area around Trinity is predominantly Hispanic, not black (Park Street, a few blocks north of campus, is considered New England's "Hispanic Main Street" and is very active). Hartford is a very poor city but it is not so dangerous as many students like to believe, I have never felt unsafe walking around any area of the city in the day time (I frequently walk from Trin to Downtown and WalMart - both about a mile away in opposite directions) and just like any city I would not walk alone in an unfamiliar area at night - not all Trinity students share this view but that is probably because many have never really lived in a city. The area of Hartford that has the worst reputation for violent crime is the North End, which is far from Trinity and I've never known anyone who had a reason to go to that part of town other than for volunteer work. The South End, where Trinity is located, is much safer.</p>
<p>Also, yes there is plenty to do on campus, in fact most of the college's social scene occurs on campus. Most people head to Vernon Street on weekends, which is the "social" side of campus, for fraternity and non-fraternity parties and school sponsored parties and events. On weeknights people generally make their own fun if they are not working but few people are bored at Trin very often.</p>
<p>Thanks jtvoyager, that is good insider info!</p>