Adams House Welcomed Sophomores Graciously

We are writing to express our disappointment with the article "Randomization: The First Week" (Sept. 13). A section of the article suggested that incoming sophomores did not feel welcomed by Adams House. We were interviewed by a Crimson reporter for this article and feel that our opinions were severely misrepresented. Both the manner in which the reporter approached us and solicited our opinions and the context in which they were eventually portrayed are inconsistent with ethical journalism.

The reporter came to us with a preconceived assesment of the feelings of incoming sophomores. When our comments failed to agree with his assessment, rather than report this accurately, he placed a quote in a distorted context so it appeared to support his assertions about Adams House. The article suggested that all sophomores felt unwelcome, when in fact several of us in the group he approached explicitly refuted this claim. The article maligned Adams House for not offering welcoming activities soon enough, when in fact the interview was conducted the day before sophomores were even required to be on campus. Everyone in the group remarked on their appreciation of welcome events held the previous spring, suggested they be mentioned in the article and expressed as interest in future events.

We deeply regret that The Crimson ignored the positive tone of our response and, in consequence, created an inaccurate and negative portrayal of the feelings of entering sophomores, of Adams House as a whole and of the process of randomization. Adams House is in fact a friendly and welcoming community of which we are pound to be a part --Sarah D. Pershouse '99, Meeghan H. Piemonte '99