This is the right thing to do, and the time to do it is now.
![dartmouth social scene dartmouth social scene](https://i.cbc.ca/1.2580290.1395334004!/fileImage/httpImage/image.jpg)
It is time for us to act in order to preserve what is unique, joyous and fun about the undergraduate experience at Dartmouth and to end the extreme behaviors that are in conflict with our mission and fundamentally harmful-to individuals, and to the fabric of our community. And as your President, I will lead that change. (Pause) IT IS TIME FOR DARTMOUTH TO CHANGE. There is a grave disconnect between our culture in the classroom and the behaviors outside of it-behaviors which too often seek not to elevate the human spirit, but debase it. The actions I have detailed are antithetical to everything that we stand for and hope for our students to be. From sexual assaults on campus…to a culture where dangerous drinking has become the rule and not the exception…to a general disregard for human dignity as exemplified by hazing, parties with racist and sexist undertones, disgusting and sometimes threatening insults hurled on the internet.to a social scene that is too often at odds with the practices of inclusion that students are right to expect on a college campus in 2014. (Pause) But Dartmouth’s promise is being hijacked by extreme behavior, masked by its perpetrators as acceptable fun. We are a great institution, 245 years old, poised for an even better future. There is, I echo, no finer undergraduate education than the one offered here.Īnd while ours is a legacy of scholastic excellence, it’s also a legacy of a unique social experience-an experience of lifelong friendships formed in this New Hampshire town, a singular experience that has for generations borne graduates with unparalleled emotional intelligence. I’m doubly proud to have the privilege today to serve at its helm. Indeed, some of the most talented, passionate, and engaging students, faculty and staff that you’ll find anywhere in the world call Dartmouth their home.Īs an alumnus, I have been so proud to put this institution’s name behind my own on my resume. Of the 20 Thiel Fellows chosen from around the world-three hail from Dartmouth.ĭartmouth is home today to one of the most decorated NCAA athletes in the history of college sports. In this year’s graduating class, not one but two students will become our College’s 74th and 75th Rhodes scholars. I see it in our College’s leadership in experiential learning- fundamental to ensuring a sustaining higher education model for the future.Īnd I see it, of course, in the many accolades earned by our students -in the classroom, on the field, in the studio, in the lab. All of which affirm the intellectual curiosity of our students, the strength of our faculty, the living and breathing commitment by so many people to make the world a better place. I see it in the quiet and uncelebrated moments-the conversations and dinners I’ve shared, my hours in the classroom, the letters I have received. But more has remained the same.įoremost, what I took for truth as a young graduate, has been affirmed through nearly four decades in higher education: there is no finer undergraduate education than the one offered by Dartmouth.Įverywhere on campus, I have been greeted with manifestations of this reality. Much has changed since I left in the spring of 1977. It has been almost one year now since I returned to Dartmouth…returning to this home in Hanover in a far different capacity than I left it 37 years ago. Good evening, students, faculty, staff, alumni.
#DARTMOUTH SOCIAL SCENE FULL#
Here is the full text of his remarks as prepared for delivery: He pledged to help change the New Hampshire campus’ culture. to a social scene that is too often at odds with the practices of inclusion that students are right to expect on a college campus in 2014.” to a general disregard for human dignity as exemplified by hazing, parties with racist and sexist undertones, disgusting and sometimes threatening insults hurled on the internet. to a culture where dangerous drinking has become the rule and not the exception. Hanlon, president of Dartmouth College, delivered a speech Wednesday night in which he said that the elite Ivy League school’s promise “is being hijacked by extreme behavior, masked by its perpetrators as acceptable fun.” He continued: “The list of offenses is familiar. Dartmouth College’s president criticized the actions of some students, saying they are harming the school’s reputation.