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In print | September 18, 2008

Eleven students from the California Institute of Technology filled the Parrish parlors with suitcases, duffel bags and unfamiliar faces last Wednesday. These students spent two days talking with Swarthmore students and administrators to evaluate the college’s social and academic atmosphere.
The Caltech students’ visit to Swarthmore was part of a two week “Student Experience Trip.”
The program materialized after Caltech student Craig Montuori submitted a proposal for funding from the Moore-Hufstedler Fund, which provides resources to improve the quality of student life at Caltech.

Montuori’s vision was realized this September, when the student delegation traversed the country to gather information about eight east coast schools that Caltech considers peer institutions: Olin College of Engineering, Harvard, Yale, Princeton, Williams, MIT, Swarthmore and Haverford.
According to a website dedicated to the program, “The Student Experience Trip is designed to examine the culture and atmosphere of other colleges and universities, study specific aspects of student life and the student experience and produce a student-authored report.” The participants were particularly interested in collecting information from the host institutions that might guide the construction of a new campus center and the rebuilding of some residential houses at Caltech. They also examined more general issues pertaining to student life, such as student activities, housing policies and athletics.

“At all our stops we had scheduled meetings with deans and people in charge of academic affairs. We also talked to student body presidents and campus leaders. There was a lot of unplanned stuff because there’s a lot of stuff that it doesn’t make sense to have a sit down meeting about,” Caltech student Anthony Chong said.

At Swarthmore, the delegation of Caltech students met with Associate Dean of Student Life Myrt Westphal, Dean of Students Jim Larimore and Associate Dean of Academic Affairs Garikai Campbell. They also sat down with Vice President Maurice Eldridge ’61.

Before leaving Caltech, the students had done a considerable amount of research and came prepared with specific questions. “The conversations ranged from all kinds of things. One was about our housing situation because people switch housing every year [at Swarthmore] while [Caltech has] a house system where you join a house and stay with that group. So that was really very different,” said Westphal.

In conversations with the deans, the delegation noted other differences between the two institutions, including the college’s alcohol policy, the role of RAs and social integration between students of different class years.

Members of the Caltech delegation also discussed their observations with Swarthmore students.
“They appreciated so many small things,” Student Council Vice President Sven David Udekwu ’09 said.

The delegate he hosted, Edward Chen, was intrigued by academic opportunities such as the honors program and directed readings.

After completing their visit to Haverford and Swarthmore, the delegation returned to Caltech on Sept. 13. They have not yet decided whether their observations at peer institutions will manifest in policy changes at their own school.

“We have a lot we still want to reflect on. I think there is definitely a lot of stuff we want to talk about, but it’s too early to say what exactly will work,” said Chong. Not only does the delegation need to identify the policies it would like to see replicated at Caltech, but it must also assess the feasibility of implementing these changes.

Chong said he was confident that Caltech’s administration will be receptive to the delegation’s suggestions. “We do have power through our influence. The administration from the president down knows what we set out to do, so it’s about letting people know what we want to do,” Chong said.
Also, stories from past trips give Chong reason to believe that the delegation can effect change. Chong said that in the 1930s three students took a quarter off to visit schools on the east coast and in England. These students recommended the housing system that is now currently in place. A similar type of trip happened in the ’70s. The returning delegation suggested that the school admit girls. Shortly thereafter, girls were allowed to enroll at Caltech.

Not only did this year’s delegation get ideas about suggestions for change back at Caltech, but it also gave Swarthmore a chance to examine itself. Students and administrators had to answer a barrage of questions about what makes up Swarthmore’s culture and atmosphere. They also had to test their hospitality. “It was a good experience hearing them talk about how much they really liked our school and how the people were so friendly. It’s nice to know that we are a very open campus with new people,” Udekwu said. When asked if Swarthmore would ever consider doing something like this, Westphal said, “I don’t think we wouldn’t do it. I don’t think we have the sense that life at Swarthmore needs a total revamping and so we might take small trips. We’re very unique. One size doesn’t fit all in our case.”

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