College Focuses on First-Year Fun

On a typical weekend night in autumn, it is not unusual to find a bevy of freshmen huddled by the Johnston Gate shuttle stop, dialing phone numbers to find the exact location of the Quad party referred to them by a friend.

Often ridiculed for their stereotypical mass movements from one party to the next, and separated from upperclass housing by the gates of the Yard, freshmen are generally on the fringe of the Harvard social scene. For most, large parties are scarce and, without ties to upperclassmen, weekend nights tend to be quiet or spent on the prowl for a decent activity.

The Harvard social scene has been the subject of heated criticism in recent years, in particular the lack of social options for freshmen.

But now, student groups and the College administration—including the First-Year Social Committee (FYSC) and the Freshman Dean’s Office (FDO)—are making a concerted effort to improve the freshman experience.

These efforts come as the FDO sees new leadership this year for the first time in over a decade, with Thomas A. Dingman ’67 stepping into the role of former dean Elizabeth S. Nathans, and as the College administration has stated that student life is a top priority.

“We’ve wanted to ensure that we’re creating the best first year for our students that we can,” Dingman says. “So, we’re paying attention to all aspects of it: academic, social, and extracurricular.”

Though the FDO should play a key role in enhancing first-year social life, Dingman says, student involvement through the FSYC will also be central to the effort.

“That’s really where the best planning comes from,” Dingman says. “We need to know what has appeal to students and then count on them to do some of the designing, the advertising, the oversight in the moment.”

In an effort to enhance the first-year experience, the FDO, the FYSC, and College Campus Life Fellow Justin H. Haan ’05 are planning to make allowances for more casual dorm gatherings, organize more events for freshmen, and free up student space.

DORM PARTIES

The FDO has made clarifying the College’s policy on freshman dorm parties a key issue this year, according to Dingman.

While there is no written policy prohibiting non-alcoholic freshman parties, Dingman says many upperclassmen have come to speak to him about a “rule” prohibiting any type of dorm party, which was enforced during their first year.

“It’s not my understanding that there is currently a ban on parties,” Dingman says. “We’re trying to ensure more flexibility while we propagate standards and make people clear about our expectations if they are hosting.”

The FDO is trying to promote suite gatherings for freshmen to relax and have fun social outlets while following certain restrictions, Dingman says.

Parties would be expected to remain within a suite, follow standard rules for attendance numbers, and not disrupt the rest of the building with noise, Dingman says. Parties would also have to shut down at 2 a.m., all in accordance with party regulations across campus.

But some students say that though such a policy would be an improvement, freshman parties are not Harvard’s social forte.

“A lot of the freshman parties are pretty dull just because they are aimed at a smaller group of people,” says Gianna M. DeCaro ’09, who lives in Weld Hall. “Freshmen are not used to throwing as many parties.”

“It was very rare for me to spend a night in which the central event was a freshman dorm,” says Nick J. Melvoin ’08, who is also a Crimson editor, recalling his freshman year.

Because of the state law banning underage drinking, the University is responsible for ensuring that freshmen are behaving legally.

“If there’s an event in a freshman dorm, we can pretty much assume that it’s being hosted by someone underage and we cannot turn our backs on that for legal reasons and also as responsible adults in the community,” Dingman says.

The expectation is that freshman events should not include alcohol because 99 percent of freshmen are underage, according to Director of Alcohol and Substance Abuse Services Ryan M. Travia.

To clarify policies on freshman dorm parties, the FDO is increasing communication with proctors.

“We want to be clearer about what’s required if you do host and expect that if there are some infractions that there would be a quick conversation with the proctor,” Dingman says.

In the past, underage drinking infractions were directly referred to one of the three assistant deans of freshmen, Dingman says. Today, however, administrators hope to move to a policy where infractions are first discussed with the proctor, unless the behavior is severe, in which case the issue would go to the FDO.

Students making fake IDs, “indulging in risky behavior,” or violating a previous warning would all be considered “severe” cases, Dingman says.

“We’d like to create more room for a proctor-student conversation,” he says.

ORGANIZED EVENTS

Aside from promoting dorm gatherings, the FDO is working with the FYSC to boost the number of social offerings.

“One of the goals has been to try to elevate the FYSC’s presence to the equivalent of a House council: planning more events and planning larger events,” says Haan.

In addition to coordinating the Freshman Formal, as it has in past years, the FYSC is also trying to host more events for the full class.

Already this year, the committee has organized the Halloween Catwalk, weekly “O.C.” viewing sessions in Loker Commons, and more recently a freshman-only pre-party before last Thursday’s pep rally.

“We’re trying really hard to offer more social outlets for the freshman class,” says FYSC Chair Zachary A. Y. Pollinger ’09. “There is need for improvement, but I think that there’s a good amount of stuff going on right now.”

According to Pollinger, the FYSC has been tossing around several ideas for possible upcoming events, including a Spring Carnival, a male beauty pageant, and theme parties in the Strauss Hall common room. The committee is considering themes like a luau in the middle of the winter and an ABC—Anything But Clothing—party, in which people can attend wrapped in duct tape or newspaper. The FYSC plans to host its first Strauss theme party the weekend after Thanksgiving, Pollinger says.

To fund these events, the FYSC relies on its annual budget from the Undergraduate Council (UC).

If non-alcoholic parties are officially allowed, the UC would also consider handing out individual party grants for freshman suites to host these gatherings, according to UC Vice President Clay T. Capp ’06.

FINDING SPACE

As the FYSC works to organize more events, the committee must learn to deal with the lack of student space, particularly for freshmen.

While Houses have common rooms and dining halls to host events, various clubs and student organizations occupy the common spaces available in freshmen dorms.

Originally, the University expected Loker Commons to fill this void, according to Haan.

“Its space and its location aren’t necessarily suited well for that role,” says Haan.

This fall, the College announced a slate of future social space renovations, including the construction of a pub in Loker Commons and a café in Lamont Library, as well as renovations to Hilles Library and the basements of Canaday, Holworthy, and Thayer Halls.

“I think the permanent Loker Pub is going to be a great thing for freshmen and upperclassmen,” Melvoin says.

Another space available to freshmen is the Annenberg dining hall. Unfortunately, Dingman says, planning any event there becomes costly, because moving the tables requires the help of professional movers.

Though the FYSC held the Halloween Catwalk in Annenberg, the committee’s limited budget cannot accommodate hosting events there on a regular basis.

According to Dingman, construction efforts in Hilles may leave more space in the Yard next year.

“My hope is that, if we can develop space in Hilles for extracurricular organizations, we can free up some of the space that they’re occupying now and return it to the rightful users: the freshmen,” Dingman says.

The renovated Yard basement space would likely be prioritized for freshmen, Haan said earlier this fall.

Studies of past freshman surveys suggested that first-year residences needed more social space, Haan told The Crimson in September. “Unlike the Houses, there is a real absence of that in the Yard,” he said at the time.

With the new spaces and improved policies, many are hopeful that the freshman experience is set for improvement.

“There’s a lot of stuff to do and a lot of cool kids in our class,” says James P. Canning ’09. “You just have to be proactive about it. I’m excited for the coming months and years of Harvard social life.”