Hamilton College
Holi 2013 / the lost weekend
Colgate Article Throws Major Shade At Hamilton
As you’ve probably heard by now, MACKLEMORE IS COMING TO HAMILTON!!!!!!!!!!!!!! (In case you can’t tell, I am BEYOND PUMPED.) Class and Charter Concert, May 10, 6 p.m. Turf Field. Everyone is welcome.
In this vein of inclusivity, last week Hamilton CAB Concert Coordinator Lily Reszi Rothman reached out to Colgate SGA in an attempt to establish a form of mutual publicity that would benefit both colleges. She wanted to allow more Colgate students to be aware of the Walk the Moon concert (where Macklemore was announced) this past Saturday, and Hamilton’s annual Class and Charter concert.
(Source: inthecac)
(via unoriginaldream)
The Onion, Double Order!
The Onion pokes fun at Hamilton this week, with a brief reference to Amherst. I personally was distracted by the brief shot of a scheduled performance by Mindy Kaling, but that is neither here nor there. (You don’t need Mindy, Hamilton, you already have Bon Jovi–kind of).
If you were offended by The Onion’s erroneous assumption that ‘Cac students would pay $5 to see a comedy hypnotist, just remember that our week in satire could be a whole lot worse.
Your move, IvyGate.
(Source: inthecac)
Wellin Museum. Hamilton College. Clinton, New York.
spring break
expectation
reality
Secrets secrets are no fun…
If you’re a student at Hamilton College, then you’ve probably heard the whisperings around campus about the new version of the Facebook phenomenon, Hamilton Secrets. It’s based on the real-world project by Frank Warren who distributed 2,000 blank postcards in public spaces around the U.S., instructing strangers to use the cards to anonymously air their secrets. This spawned Warren’s–now famous–project PostSecret, and he’s since received over 150k postcards–but what of HamTech’s version?
The PostSecret concept was brought to the Hamilton campus in 2012 and was received with warm and open arms by the community. Then, this January, it seemed like the activity would be able to expand by using social media (based on the Facebook forum NYU Secrets). Much like the postcard version, individuals send their “secrets” to an anonymous email address (who knows who this big brother-figure really is, but he/she knows who we all are… that is, unless you’re using an incognito email alias) who then reviews the posts for spam and personal attacks (e.g., use of specific names).
From Hamilton Secret’s FB page:
The idea is simple enough: send us something that you’ve been dying to share with someone but have been simply unable to muster up the courage for. Be it poignant or hilarious, depressing or joyful, shocking or boring, life-changing or mundane, we’ll post it here anonymously. Even if you’re struggling with your time at Hamilton, this is the place to vent.
The first few posts are harmless enough, a mix of less serious secrets and others having much deeper connotations in the Hamilton scene with themes of fitting in, hooking up, and finding one’s self in such a complex social environment.
However, in the recent weeks, secrets have become more pointed towards specific campus societies. Are these groups seen as so privileged on campus, that personal attacks aren’t only appropriate–but necessary?
And then some more specifically about ATX, one of the sororities on campus…
It’s so sad to think that there are individuals on the campus who wish to actively try to create a further divide in an already unstable social environment, where just earlier this semester the administration tried to take the privilege of pledging away from the January admits with less than a couple weeks’ notice. The “reputation” many societies have on a campus of about 1800 students is also known to the student body, making these groups easy targets of hate and criticism. This all being said, I am not a member of a society and yet I know a large majority of the sisters of ATX. I think they are some of the friendliest, funniest, and coolest ladies at this school. They have gone out of their way to make me feel welcome and included when they didn’t have to, and do a great deal for this campus and this community.
I can understand individuals who may have had a bad experience with one or two of the ATX sisters, but to generalize and take out that anger on an entire society is completely absurd. The hate exposed on Hamilton Secrets about the greek life at Hamilton or other specific clubs or groups has got to stop. This community space was created as a way to safely express feelings and thoughts that one might not feel completely secure with sharing, but now it has become a platform for individuals to be just mean. Some students have used the forum to fight back:
And…
This negative energy is bringing the campus down in many ways. Why should we try to alienate each other even further than the administration has? I recognize that everyone is entitled to their own opinions, but this platform was created to be a safe and protected space to share REAL secrets that aren’t about trying to put others down. If you wish to share your problems with some society or club, feel free to share it with whoever you want, but not on this community space. Hamilton Secrets has already taken the first step into addressing this problem by creating a poll asking its members whether they think the admins should “evaluate submissions prior to posting them as secrets?” So far, the overwhelming majority of responses favor the affirmative. Hopefully, we will see the future of Hamilton Secrets move towards a more positive position in Hamilton’s online presence.
(Source: inthecac)
A Big Sister’s Hope: Choose ‘Cac
Ah, to be a young, naive rising senior in high school again.
As 17-year olds around the country start to filter through their college lists by visiting their dreams schools and interviewing with both admins and rising college seniors, it becomes clear that the college process in this day and age (however opaque and daunting it may seem) has really given future applicants a chance to showcase who they are personally rather than considering transcripts and essays alone. My youngest sister has started this process and, after cracking 2000 on her SAT’s, has started making the rounds at our beloved ‘Cac institutions. Interviewing at Bates, Colby, Bowdoin, Hamilton (my current school) and Williams (our father’s alma mater), she has started imagining herself as a member of the student body at one of our prestigious schools. Although my mother attended Barnard in NYC and my other sister is a rising junior at Providence College, I have a feeling she, my youngest sister (in whom I see much of myself and my father), will go ‘Cac.
While she is touring both D3 and D1 schools, I secretly hope she applies and eventually attends one of the 11 New England (and NY) small colleges where we pride ourselves on intellectual curiosity and well-rounded academic growth. We may not graduate with any “practical skills” that we could learn by attending a trade school but we learn to think and learn in ways that many graduates lack. At this time next year, the class of 2013 will be out in the real world trying to feel our way through entry-level jobs, world travels, and growing pains like any other graduating class. However, the alumni networks our schools have created and the real world skills we have learned will prove invaluable in our impending futures.
So to my little sister: I wish you all the best with your college search (but I secretly hope you join the ‘Cac family).
We’ll be waiting here with open arms.
(Source: inthecac)
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“A year ago, yesterday, I graduated from Hamilton College, a member of the Class of 2011. That day, for the first time—perhaps ever—I had no set plans or commitments. Senior year had been so unbelievably busy, and I had made the decision to live entirely from moment to moment, as fully in each as possible. Aside from the wonderful feeling successfully committing to each moment brings, for me, the moment to moment approach was necessary as a means to my diploma. And so, as I drove down the hill after graduation, with four years of Hamilton packed around me and undeniably in me, I entered more of an unknown than I wanted. I was uncomfortable. That discomfort did not fade off quickly, as I hoped or tried to convince myself it would. Indeed, a part of it still lingers. Maybe it always will.
The last year has been an important one—not one I could or would have imagined at graduation, though. I faced more continuous and steady rejection than ever before, from the afternoon I learned I would not travel the world on a Hamilton grant through just days ago when a possible summer internship fell through. It is easy to lose sight of your self worth when the resounding answer is “not this time” for months on end. At times this past year I did. I lost loved ones, and I was no longer sheltered by the rigid structure and fast-paced nature of my Hamilton life, so I had plenty of time to think on each loss. It is easy to wonder what living is worth when people, and the best of people at that, go so suddenly. That is, until you realize that this suddenness itself is the reason for living as fully as possible in each moment you are fortunate enough to have in the first place.
I persevered, surrounded and encouraged by the love of family and friends. I grew to more fully appreciate the breath in my lungs, the people in my life, and the chance I have to live. I made countless life lists, even though it was overwhelming at times to dream and set goals, especially during emotional bouts. When I felt fear and irrationality creep in as I pondered a future possibility I knew I was hitting on something worth my time, so I moved it higher on the list. I kept Hamilton close all the while, trusting my four years there and how they had shaped me. I also trusted the person I was becoming post Hamilton. And with time, opportunity and I met. Dodging many rejections, I bounced from one victory to the next, often frustrated by the seeming disorganization and smallness of it all—the lack of trajectory. I reassured myself that all the interesting and various experiences I soaked up would weave together elegantly over the course of my life. Above all else, I did my best to remain grateful. I am stronger now.”
"(Source: inthecac)
Bowdoin+Hamilton
