Questionable administrative priorities?

Colleges & Universities Wesleyan University
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<p>MrPimpateer- I appreciate that Eclectic is a valuable addition to this campus, but it does NOT set the tone of Wesleyan–not for me, at least. Not while I was looking at the school, and not while I’ve been here. It sets the tone of a certain subset of Wes, sure, but that is not why everyone comes to this school, and plenty of people are quirky and awesome and hip (or dorky) without Eclectic. (Not to mention, reputations of societies change all the time–Eclectic was not always hip and ironic, and probably it will change at some point in the future). </p>

<p>Also, yes, everyone acts stupid, sometimes. And this SBJ decision might be out of proportion to what the hearing was about. But that doesn’t change the fact that Eclectic was in a lot of trouble with ResLife ANYWAY, and have been for a while. If Eclectic is shut down for good, it will be their own fault, not a conspiracy. </p>

<p>That said, it will be sad if they are shut down, because they are a good venue, for sure, and are the center of a lot of people’s social lives. But they don’t define Wes.</p>

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<p>Thanks, MadJoy. I figured we (prefrosh)(and students I guess) weren’t getting the whole picture.</p>

<p>I’ve stopped reading Pimpateer’s posts because they always depress me – hip clothing and loud music are what I associate with Wesleyan – and his experiences have been very different from what mine will be, I’m sure. </p>

<p>Anyway, it’s unfortunate that the SJB member you talked to can’t say anything publicly about the conflict and how it is being misrepresented. Hopefully things will die down before WesFest.</p>

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<p>flying_pig</p>

<p>Heh. If my posts depress you, just wait til you get here. </p>

<p>Maybe you’ll have a different experience. I’ve had the experience I’ve had and I’m not in any way apologetic for either having had it or for talking about it honestly. You might notice what seems to be a contradictory tone in my posts: sometimes I’m really depressed-sounding, other times I defend Wesleyan ways fiercely. That’s because going to a quirky place like this, there are some things you like and many more which you don’t, but rest assured, I am satisfied overall with my experience here. But I just can’t stand it when all the other posters pile on the positivity as if Wesleyan was paradise. It isn’t. If I can make the representation more accurate then I’ll do that. Continue to ignore my posts, but when you come here don’t sink into a depression and stay in bed and fail your classes, cause I’ve already seen several of my close friends do that (hell, I almost did). I’m telling it like it is and you should read what I write because of that.</p>

<p>smartalic</p>

<p>I went to an extremely expensive, exclusive, 95% white private prep school in […]. I played 3 varsity sports back then (sure, 2 of them were xc and track, not REAL sports, but who’s counting?). I know what the social scene is like at Williams and Amherst - it’s like that. Sports are everything; what sport you play defines who you are and what your social opportunities will be. They define who you hang out with and who you CAN hang out with. If you don’t play lacrosse or hockey you basically can’t hang out with the dudes who do, who are almost all white, conservative, and neon-green or pink polo shirt wearing. </p>

<p>I overnighted at Amherst; I of course visited and was accepted at Williams. I know that of which I speak. </p>

<p>I came here specifically to NOT have be trapped in a place where the social scene was dominated by sports teams, in particular lacrosse and hockey. I came here specifically to avoid the white pre-professional aesthetic of those places - if you’re not pre-law or pre-medicine or an econ major, people look at you like…huh? But most importantly, I was sick of not being able to **** the (conventionally beautiful, field hockey playing, blond) future trophy wives at my high school because they would never even think of getting with a boy who wasn’t a white, sharp nosed, blond, built, Jeep driving, shaggy haired (the “lax shag”) backward-ball-cap-wearing jock. As a result of not being one of those guys, my social opportunities were limited in high school, and I decided I did not want that to be my college experience.</p>

<p>I’m not saying that everyone at Williams and Amherst are like that; I doubt nearly as many kids play sports there as at my HS, because sports were required there. What I’m saying is the social scene will be DOMINATED by those kids. These kids run the parties at Williams and Amherst, or at least the teams and frats do. Would you really want to go to a school where all the pretty girls flocked to DKE parties and there’s a guy at the door letting chicks and frat members in only and turning everyone else away? Do you really want to go to a school where every time the jocks come in to a party, the chick that you were just talking to for the last half hour gets up, goes over to them, and leaves with one of them? </p>

<p>**** that ****. That’s why I go to Wesleyan.</p>

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<p>MrPimpateer- Do you honestly think that Wes will turn into a place where “all the pretty girls flocked to DKE parties and there’s a guy at the door letting chicks and frat members in only and turning everyone else away?” just because Eclectic is shut down? Because I find that HIGHLY unlikely.</p>

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<p>ah, beta vs. eclectic. good times. ;)</p>

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<p>yeah. when i talk about wesleyan turning into williams or amherst, that’s (^) what i’m talking about. </p>

<p>i am absolutely saying that with eclectic gone wesleyan will come to resemble the picture i just painted. eclectic makes it cool to be weird - to be into art, to dress outlandishly in tight pants and other funny clothes which would be unthinkable elsewhere, to be into music, etc. </p>

<p>without it as a clearinghouse for those kinds of endeavors (art, fashion, music) on campus, what will happen is that the people who are into those things will go off in their own directions. in the short term the social scene will fragment even more than it already is; there’ll be a period of uncertainty where, like i said, people just go off and do their own thing. in the long term, however, the types of people who are drawn to wesleyan by the kinds of things which eclectic represents are not going to come here anymore - they’ll go to art school, they’ll stay in california. in the long term, then, wesleyan loses its distinct artsy-quirky culture, with large organized social groups like Psi U and, yes, Beta and DKE sucking up the difference. </p>

<p>And1.</p>

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<p>Dude, Westco still exists. Over the long term ADP could also potentially fill in some of that gap (we used to be known for raves, a while ago, if you didn’t know). I mean, who knows what would happen? I just don’t think Eclectic is as important as you think. As I said, as I understand it, they weren’t even always the center of hipness that they are now. Wes’s reputation is what draws the quirky/artsy people, not Eclectic.</p>

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<p>“I just don’t think Eclectic is as important as you think. As I said, as I understand it, they weren’t even always the center of hipness that they are now.”</p>

<p>I agree. I don’t hang out w/ the hipster crowd all that often but I see WestCo more as the center of ‘hipness.’ Eclectic seems like just a more exclusive group of hipsters.
Having said that, I do kind of worry about the incoming classes becoming more mainstream. Especially after I heard that reslife or some other admins were trying to ‘diversify’ westco by getting rid of housing apps. now that i think we need to preserve.</p>

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<p>I understand the importance of Eclectic for Wesleyan. I mean, its one of the quirky things that makes Wes what it is; but that being said, I think that the SJB had its own reasons for shutting it down temporarily. As pre-frosh, one of the things I’ve heard the most about is how crazy Eclectic is and how it characterizes Wes. I applied to Wes because its crazy, and I agree with Mr. Pimpateer to some extent that is one of the things that distinguishes Wesleyan from Amherst and other stereotypically “preppy, preparatory” schools.
Nevertheless, I’m sure the SJB wouldn’t shut it down withouth ample reason since it IS the student judicial board. I’m fairly positive that when Eclectic is reopened, it will be wilder, crazier and more dynamic than before, so in the meantime wouldn’t it be possible to sort of create a temporary Eclectic stand-in until its reopened? That way, the SJB’s decision is still maintained, Wes students still have their outlet for their unique energy and spirit?
Plus, I don’t think that they’re showcasing Eclectic at WesFest is so horrible, since it is a reflection of the quirkiness at Wes. Sure, i admit i thought they were being a bit hypocritical when I first read it, but I think they just want to reassure incoming students that Wes will, regardless of the limitations forced upon it, maintain iits uniqueness.
Of course, I’m just pre-frosh so my comments aren’t really from first-hand observation or participation. I’m sure that the Wesleyan community must feel like something very important has been taken away, but as an incoming student, I also see Eclectic to be a very important part of my future college experience. :slight_smile: and I must say, all the efforts of Wes students to bring attention to this cause is very admirable.</p>