<p>Hey, i've seen some people posting about 'discovery days' for smith. I was recently admitted into Smith's 2011 class -- i got my decision online because i was out of town. i checked my phone messages from out-of-town, and someone from Smith called my house. She was talking about a program for Students of Color (which i am) and said that all expenses are paid for. Is this the same thing as Discovery Days? When is this going to take place? i haven't received my applicant packet yet because my mail was stopped, and i'd like to know if it will interfere with prom and the like.</p>
<p>Yes, it's Discovery Weekend, and this year it's Friday, April 20 and Saturday, April 21. (Thursday-Friday of the same week is Open Campus, which is open to all recently accepted students.)</p>
<p>All recently accepted students, even transfers or only first years?</p>
<p>The Smith "Students of Color" day is, from what I have learned, absolutely unique among colleges (as in, I can't find a single one that does the same.) That is, they hold it on the same day as presentations of honors theses and research work, and expect the acceptees to attend at least part of it. Students - whether of color or not - are considered serious students first and foremost, and what they intend to "sell" are the academic opportunities availability to Smith students and the accomplishments of those who have made the decision to attend. </p>
<p>(The year we were there it was also the day of the 5-College Student Anthropology Conference, also held on the Smith campus.)</p>
<p>I'm not sure if Open Campus is open to transfer students - if it is, you should have information about it in the acceptance packet that was mailed to you. I want to say yes, but I am not the right person to ask and I don't want to mislead anyone.</p>
<p>I said "recently accepted" because it is not open to students admitted ED. It's only for RD applicants.</p>
<p>How well-accepted are students of color at smith? they seem to be emphasizing to colored applicants that everything is "A-okay" to a point where I've begun to wonder if it's...not okay?</p>
<p>Apparently, all students are invited to open campus and only First year students are invited to discovery weekend.</p>
<p>Can a Smithie out there please make a facebook event for this lovely weekend???</p>
<p>I agree DostoevskyCA, me and my parents were just talking about this the other day...I mean, from what I gather, Smith is supposed to be a really diverse school.</p>
<p>It's simple, really: Smith wants to continue to prove it can compete, and compete successfully, with Ivies and other prestige schools - especially those in cities, which many students of color choose - in the quality of educational opportunities it offers to students of color. And with a heavy emphasis on "educational" - which is why they schedule it on thesis/research weekend. They know - from experience - that the percentage of students who accept offers of admission grows (I was told, almost doubles) for those who they can get to attend open campus events.</p>
<p>Tea-
I can't take credit for this, but it does exist!
<a href="http://hs.facebook.com/event.php?eid=2265430780%5B/url%5D">http://hs.facebook.com/event.php?eid=2265430780</a></p>
<p>Okay, well I am a student of color at Smith so maybe I can give a little perspective here. I would say that I chose Smith in part because of the liberal arts New England college's I looked at, Smith seemed the most committed to Diversity. After being here for almost two years (wow, I can't beleive it), I can say that I'm fairly happy with diversity on campus. The Unity orgs (Black student union, Asian American students, Nosotras (latina women's club), etc) are very active if that's your thing, and by the numbers were are economically and racially diverse for a college of our size, type, and location, though the reality of living life as a student of color is not always like an admissions office brochure. </p>
<p>Students of color are well received, though you are probably going to run into one or two people who have never really encountered a person of color of their own age (my roommate came from a town with one black family), though you will find that at many schools I think. </p>
<p>One of the bad things about having so many active Unity orgs (and there are a lot), is that students tend to join them and then just hang out with their unity org friends (similar to how rugby players hang out with rugby players, or theatre majors with theatre majors). It's not a clique, per se, but I do see a lot of groups of black students, latina students, asian students, caribbean students, african students, and not as much mixing as I would like to see, and I think that the unity orgs contribute to that. Also, the desire to find something or someone familiar to hang onto when you're a minority as students of color inevitably are at Northeast LACs.</p>
<p>Bottom line, remember that being a student of color in any college is just one of the things that you are, and try to keep your friends as diverse as you want your school to be.</p>
<p>Thank you, SmithieandProud. I think that's about the most realistic perspective I've heard so far from anyone with regards to the "diversity issue" on campus...will def. keep all this in mind...</p>