<p>How does Harvard's ghettoizing of the freshmen on the Square differ from that at Williams?</p>
<p>It doesn't, and is equally bad. (Harvard first-years, or at least the ones I've known, have often complained about their isolation, and virtually all their "alcohol emergencies" (fewer than in Billsville) are concentrated there. I know that at Yale, even when the first-years aren't living in their residential colleges, they are already "attached" to them. Harvard has been debating adopting the Yale system, which is favored by their Pres.. Pomona has modified mixed housing, with most of the lower class folks on south campus, and uppers on north.)</p>
<p>Actually, Haon should be the expert on what is happening at other places.</p>
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My personal opinion, which I know flies in the face of Eph wisdom and which is wholly irrelevant and no one needs to listen, is that the core of the problem is the ghettoizing of freshmen.
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<p>I agree. As I have thought about this issue, I've come to believe that freshmen housing (segregated or not) has major, wide-reaching implications on campus culture.</p>
<p>In the same issue of the Williams Record I linked above is an article looking at housing systems at similar colleges. According to that article, Swarthmore, Carleton, and Pomona are three schools that mix freshmen into normal dorms. The other schools, Williams, Bowdoin, and Middlebury segregate freshmen. I don't think it's coincidental that three of these schools are known as drinking schools and three are not.</p>
<p>I think a second issue that underlies the housing debate at Williams is that it is really two very different student bodies (the nerdy academic "Odd Quader" types and the scholar athletes) sharing a campus. The administration struggles to force a community upon a mix of students that may not really share much in common. The perception of this problem is probably compounded by the administration and faculty not really liking the dominant social culture. That's very different from a college where the administration and the student body basically share a common view of how college "ought to be".</p>
<p>Mini is right. I would say that single biggest complaint at Harvard is the lack of any cohesive community. The entire university is "balkanized" with the various grad schools doing their own thing. The undergrad school is spread out all over Cambridge without even a central dining hall or student center. Many students end up finding their sense of community in an extracurricular activity.</p>
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I think a second issue that underlies the housing debate at Williams is that it is really two very different student bodies (the nerdy academic "Odd Quader" types and the scholar athletes) sharing a campus.
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<p>Although it retains the moniker, I don't think the "Odd Quad" resembles what you remember from your day. It had plenty of scholar athletes last year, including my daughter and the current quarterback--as well as many other sorts. Two frosh dorms, three upperclass dorms, and a shared dining hall. Everyone shares nearby Goodrich and the athletic facilities. Not trying to start an argument, I just don't see the segregation. She's currently sharing a suite with some juniors and another soph.</p>
<p>I actually have little knowledge of Williams housing "in my day". I moved off campus very early on -- sophmore year, if I recall. I think I spent one semester in Morgan, one in Mission Park, and one in West College.</p>