Freshman class scores strikes with '04 United project

Before they met Friday night at a bowling event with five RA groups from Wilson and Rockefeller colleges sponsored by the freshman class, Melanie Velo-Simpson '04 had never met Justin Palmen '04, simply because they live across campus.

The event was part of '04 United, a project designed to unite the freshman class by providing situations where different RA groups from different colleges meet each other in social settings.

"At the bowling alley, we had a fun Rocky-Wilson rivalry going," Rocky RA Zach Pincus-Roth '02 said. "But both of the groups started to interact more when we got to Pizza Hut because people from different groups sat next to each other at the tables."

"I hadn't met any of these people before," Palmen said. He added that he expected to continue the new friendships even after the bowling event.

Emily Lenz '04, from Rocky, was not so sure. She said she enjoyed meeting new people but would probably not get together with them afterwards.

And that's perfectly fine, says freshman class vice president Rishi Jaitly '04.

"The goal is to provide the opportunity to meet as many people as possible," he said. "My feeling is that you only go to college once. It's the only opportunity in your life that you'll ever live amongst so many peers that you can be friends with."

Class president Eli Goldsmith '04 said students are most eager to meet new people in their first year of college. "[Students] want to feel as comfortable as possible and know as many people as possible," he explained. "The freshman year is the time when most people want that to happen."

Assistant Dean of Undergraduate Students Thomas Dunne, who worked with Jaitly and other freshmen class officers organizing the program, said the hope is to get students to meet each other.

"We realize that students are not going to do this type of activity in a vacuum," Dunne said.

He plans to continue to publicize the program by contacting assistant masters of the colleges and attending some of their core group meetings with RAs and MAAs.

Jaitly explained that participation in '04 United is optional. "It's more like: here's an idea, try it," he said.

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The idea behind the program is that RAs will coordinate events with RAs they know who are from other colleges. '04 United is there to help RAs who are having trouble setting up inter-college events, he explained.

Jaitly said the freshman class does not want funding restraints to prevent RA groups from different colleges from interacting. To help make the bowling event possible, the class contributed $200 toward the total cost of about $350, he said.

For future events, the freshman class will probably foot a lower proportion of the bill because of limited financial resources. The bowling event was an exception because the class wanted "to get the ball rolling," he said.

"I'm hoping other RA groups will look at this bowling event as an example," he said. "Good starts are really important."

Class Treasurer Michael Angelo '04 said in an e-mail, "We're hoping that this can become a program in which RA groups voluntarily enact activities among other RA groups without substantial encouragement from the class of '04 nor much financial backing."

"It's worth it if one friendship is sparked from this program," Goldsmith said.