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A New Era

Residential Life at Hamilton College

"Hamilton College is not -- no good college can be -- a place of rest"

Thomas McNaughton Johnston

Professor of English, 1934-1972

Alumni Luncheon Address

Commencement 1972

I. INTRODUCTION

Hamilton is a residential college committed to offering a fine liberalarts education. We believe that a residential college is an institution whichencourages and indeed celebrates intellectual discourse, both inside andoutside the classroom. The intellectual environment on our campus should befostered by a combination of academic excellence supported by a residentialstructure that encourages learning and, more broadly, academic life. HamiltonCollege is a community in the best sense of the word; we offer our students thechance to get involved, and by doing so, develop their basic life skills. Ourgoal is to train Hamilton students to be critical thinkers who will have whatit takes to be outstanding citizens.

Hamilton has been studying its residential life program for the past severalyears. This document, formally titled "The Report of the Committee onResidential Life," represents the culmination of that study. This report isthe work of a special task force appointed by the Hamilton College Board ofTrustees consisting of trustees, administrators, faculty, and students known asthe Trustee Committee on Residential Life (the Committee). It containsrecommendations designed to build on the strengths of Hamilton's existingresidential life system. At the same time, the Committee recommends changes tothose parts of the residential life system that are no longer responsive to theneeds of our current and future students.

The recommendations reflect extensive research and open inquiry, but they areguided by three fundamental objectives: ensuring greater integration ofacademic and residential life, providing equality of social and residentialopportunity for all students, and offering all students a rich variety ofon-campus activities that serve to encourage student involvement in campuslife.

Though we are recommending some significant changes in Hamilton's residentialsystem, it is important to put this in proper context. Hamilton Collegeremains one of the finest liberal arts institutions in America -- highlycompetitive, physically beautiful, well-run and in possession of a first-ratefaculty and staff. The College is supported by devoted and accomplishedalumni. The fundamental purpose of this report is to enhance Hamilton'seducational excellence.

These proposals are not meant to stand alone. They are consistent with alarger, long-range planning process that is underway under the auspices of thePresident and Board of Trustees -- a process that will further clarify theCollege's mission, improve its quality and broaden its reputation as anexcellent institution of higher learning.

II. HISTORY

Hamilton College is over 180 years old. Until 1978, it was an all-maleinstitution with fewer than 1000 students. In 1978, Hamilton combined withKirkland College, its coordinate college for women located across the road, andbecame a coeducational college with 1600 students. Since 1978, Hamilton hasstrived to create a unified institution with equal opportunities for men andwomen with respect to all aspects of campus life. Although Hamilton has takenimportant steps in this direction, it has not yet reached its goal.

The current review of the College's residential life system represents itsthird major attempt to address coeducation. The first study, initiated inJanuary 1981, evaluated social and residential programs in light of the mergerof Hamilton and Kirkland Colleges. In the fall of 1985, the Advisory Committeeon Student Affairs studied equity issues in social and residential arrangementsand investigated the interaction between the College's academic and residentiallife. Among the recommendations proposed by the Committee was the constructionof the Beinecke Student Activities Village, which opened in 1993. It and theBristol Campus Center are the central gathering points for the campuscommunity.

In November 1990, the Board of Trustees identified equity, educationalquality, and competitiveness in admissions as three essential aspects of theCollege that required further examination. From 1990-92, the planningcommittee of the Board of Trustees focused its attention on admission ofstudents. Within that context, the planning committee discussed how residentiallife affects student recruitment. In 1992-93, the structure of residentiallife at Hamilton became one of the central issues on the agenda of the Boardof Trustees.

III._CONTEXT

Private Societies

The role played by fraternities and other private societies incampus life is a particular concern to many of the College's constituencies.When only men attended Hamilton, and the vast majority of them joined privatesocieties, the fraternity houses fulfilled most students' dining needs andvirtually all social needs. In 1960, 87 percent of Hamilton students belongedto private societies. Fraternity membership in recent years, however, hasdeclined to about 33 percent of the male students on campus, wh

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