Reflecting on four years at DePauw
By: Robin Lamkin
Issue date: 5/6/08 Section: Opinion
One of the perks of knowing that I'm graduating in 12 days (not that I'm counting) is that I now feel like I can be completely honest about my experiences at DePauw. I haven't always spoken up, even when I wanted to. I always felt I wasn't qualified to speak my mind on certain subjects. But for some reason, the idea of graduating has liberated me.
During my final interview with President Bottoms, he asked me and a few other seniors if we would have gone to DePauw if we had a chance to do it all over again. I told him I didn't know. I have had great opportunities at DePauw that I wouldn't have had at any other university. I doubt I would have become quite so involved in a school newspaper or joined a sorority elsewhere. I also know I wouldn't have gained so much from my education had I not attended a university with small class sizes and engaging professors. There's no question that the academics here are unmatched.
However, it's also been hard to attend DePauw because it's a school that has a fixed social identity. It seems as if you fit into DePauw's social atmosphere or you don't; either create your own or not. I considered transferring during my junior year, especially in the middle of the media and campus hype concerning Delta Zeta. While this obviously played a huge role in shaping my time at DePauw, this column is not meant to be a 'pity me' laundry list of my complaints. DePauw would not be DePauw without a greek system, and I'm glad for the short amount of time I spent in it.
What I am suggesting is a list of things to work on:
• For those of you who aren't seniors - if you notice something you don't like about campus, do something about it. You are never too unqualified to speak your mind.
• We've made tremendous strides in the last couple years with student activism concerning sustainabilty and making our campus green-friendly. Keep it up. Make sure that we stand behind our words.
• The greek system will always continue to be an important part of DePauw. But as I've seen over my time here, it's changing. However the percentages of students who are greek or independent change over the next few years, it is critical that we learn to define people in terms other than 'greek' or 'independent.' There is more to a person than what social network he or she is in.
During my final interview with President Bottoms, he asked me and a few other seniors if we would have gone to DePauw if we had a chance to do it all over again. I told him I didn't know. I have had great opportunities at DePauw that I wouldn't have had at any other university. I doubt I would have become quite so involved in a school newspaper or joined a sorority elsewhere. I also know I wouldn't have gained so much from my education had I not attended a university with small class sizes and engaging professors. There's no question that the academics here are unmatched.
However, it's also been hard to attend DePauw because it's a school that has a fixed social identity. It seems as if you fit into DePauw's social atmosphere or you don't; either create your own or not. I considered transferring during my junior year, especially in the middle of the media and campus hype concerning Delta Zeta. While this obviously played a huge role in shaping my time at DePauw, this column is not meant to be a 'pity me' laundry list of my complaints. DePauw would not be DePauw without a greek system, and I'm glad for the short amount of time I spent in it.
What I am suggesting is a list of things to work on:
• For those of you who aren't seniors - if you notice something you don't like about campus, do something about it. You are never too unqualified to speak your mind.
• We've made tremendous strides in the last couple years with student activism concerning sustainabilty and making our campus green-friendly. Keep it up. Make sure that we stand behind our words.
• The greek system will always continue to be an important part of DePauw. But as I've seen over my time here, it's changing. However the percentages of students who are greek or independent change over the next few years, it is critical that we learn to define people in terms other than 'greek' or 'independent.' There is more to a person than what social network he or she is in.
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