What You Would See or Be Near: Middle Path, the village of Gambier, direct views of, or suggestions of, Old Kenyon (a storied dormitory), the bookstore, the chapel, the library, the dining hall, key academic buildings, the offices of the Kenyon Review.
What You Would Miss: The athletic center, the path along the Kokosing River with its associated environmental center, some nice student apartments and other residential spaces on the north side of campus, although Kenyon’s tallest building, Caples dormitory, might be visible.
For Carleton, it is obviously The Bald Spot–specifically in winter, when it has been flooded and frozen and kids and professors are playing broom ball.
Many of the main buildings are visible from the Bald Spot, but you’d be missing the Lyman Lakes and Arb, an alternative winter wonderland with snow-shoeing and cross-country skiing and such; the residential and dining quad around the Mini Bald Spot; the walk down College Street past the Interest Houses to the Weitz Center for Creativity, and various peripheral housing (some under construction) and sporting/recreation complexes.
For the University of Pittsburgh, it is obviously the Cathedral of Learning. Inside you can see the Nationality Rooms, the soaring four-story Commons Room, peregrine falcon nests, the Frederick Honors College, and a gazillion other spaces. And then from high up in the Cathedral you can see the entire university and surrounding area including CMU and so on.
You would miss–not much, really, in the sense you can truly see just about everything from high up in the Cathedral. I guess, though, if you are inside the Cathedral, you cannot see the Cathedral looming high over you, a sort of constant in the rest of campus.
So I am thinking about the Oxford-model urban campuses full of many quadrangles and such, and I think this is a challenging question for those colleges! Indeed, in a way the whole point is to NOT have such a defining place, to intentionally break up the university into many smaller, distinct places. And even if some are more prominent than others, there is rarely one that stands above all others.
So, like, Yale as contenders at least has Old Campus, Cross Campus, and Beinecke Plaza. And I truly struggle to pick just one of those, I feel like you need at LEAST all three of those to “define” Yale. And even then you would be missing so much!
That’s a good choice, but if by “defining” we mean the area that best captures what students/alumni think is the most distinguishing character of the school, I actually disagree. I think it’s the arboretum. Those I’ve spoken with who’ve attended usually cite the arb as their favorite area of the campus, typically by a wide margin. Several have told me walking through it the first time was when they knew Carleton was the right college for them. It’s a bit reminiscent of parts of Swarthmore’s campus, but larger and more immersive (in that higher trafficked roads and buildings are further away.)
For those who don’t know, the arboretum is on campus, about 2 minutes from the nearest dorm. It’s over 800 acres of varied and spectacular scenery— woods, praries, a winding river, etc. The 15 miles of maintained trails are used extensively for walks, hikes, jogs, bike rides, and even cross country skiing. The river is used for kayaking. There are some fun surprises if you know to look for them, like the Druid Circle. It’s frequently used to relax and unwind alone or with friends or even a faculty mentor. For those who turn to outdoor activity for brainstorming or tackling a difficult assignment from a new angle, it’s an invaluable inspiration resource. It’s also visited quite a bit by a range of classes, from Geology, Biology, and Environmental Studies to Art. But it wouldn’t be a stretch to say the arb is an integral part of what makes the Carleton learning system tick for the entire community.
For nature lovers, Carleton’s arb will leave a lasting and unique impression. It’s a bit like having a mini state park right right on campus. It’s a cherished recreational destination for the town, even county.
The beautiful Japanese garden closer to the center of campus is another favorite spot for reflection, but tiny by comparison.
For this topic, I can say that the intent was to seek opinions on what might be the place on campus that is most representative of the entirety of the campus, such as a place near the center of academic or residential activity, or from which much of the campus can be seen. Stated another way, this might be the place most thought of if the question were “Where is X college?” and the reply would be “You’re at X college.”
I see. In a sense, that could still be the arboretum for Carleton, in that it’s the majority of the acreage. The Bald Spot would be the more central area for the academic buildings. The Lyman Lakes would be an another good choice, viewable from many academic buildings and some student housing, and the site for certain celebratory functions. Sorta halfway between the Bald Spot and the Arb.
I have a similar “challenge” with Wesleyan University; there are at least two highly distinctive locations on campus that represent important aspects of the college although one is probably the popular favorite while the other requires a lot more thought and experience to really appreciate.
The first is Foss Hill. It’s the geographic center of the campus as well as the highest point. Formerly known as “Observatory Hill”, a visitor can command sweeping views of everything from the university’s founding buildings, to the distant bend of the Connecticut River. And on a warm, Spring day like today, be tempted to take off your shoes and just sit, watching a baseball game:
The other is the nearby arts complex which represents a half-century commitment to the visual and performing arts as well as a complete departure in architecture. It’s really more of an immersive experience. The number of viewpoints and unpredictable pathways involved really invite you to make subsequent visits. In that sense, it’s like a liberal arts education:
I also think that there will soon be a third center of gravity once the new Life Sciences Building opens (officially billed as opening in 2026, but coming along at a nice clip.) It will punctuate a city block of science facilities with additional indoor and outdoor space from which to congregate and view the rest of the campus.
I’m start to get geometry flashbacks–a basic “bifocal” ellipse has two foci, not just the one of a circle, so maybe some campuses are more like an ellipse. And then as I recall there are also trifocal ellipses, and so on. Of course we are talking about conceptual space, social space, emotional space, and so on, not necessarily just physical space. But I think the idea of some campuses more being multifocal than others is probably sound in all those ways.
Most Defining Place: The edge of Skinner Green near Porter and Safford Halls.
What You Would See or Be Near: To the south you will see Skinner Green, Skinner Hall (academic), the Community Center and several residence halls. Beyond to the south you will sense the continuation of campus as it flows toward additional academic and residential buildings. To the north you will see the chapel, the library, the science and art facilities, and the amphitheater, as well as the grave of founder Mary Lyon.
What You Would Miss: Additional residence halls and academic buildings that border the campus in all directions, Talcott Greenhouse and the Botanic Garden, Upper and Lower Lakes, The Village Commons, the athletic complex and the equestrian center.
Views of: State Street, state capital, Library Mall (Memorial Library, State Historical Society, the fountain), Memorial Union/Terrace, Lake Mendota, and many other campus buildings.
