EDITORIAL: Membership Has Its Privileges

In a move which hardlyIn a move which hardlystrengthens the community,In a move which hardlystrengthens the community,a new class being taughtIn a move which hardlystrengthens the community,a new class being taughtin a fraternity house willIn a move which hardlystrengthens the community,a new class being taughtin a fraternity house willset aside spots for its members.In a move which hardlystrengthens the community,a new class being taughtin a fraternity house willset aside spots for its members.__________________________________ Taught by noted Law School professor Frank Goodman, Political Science 198 "Free Speech, Free Press: The Supreme Court and the First Amendment" promises to be a scholarly examination of a hot topic on campus and in the country. It also promises to be the only class conducted in a room that at night is more accustomed to spilled beer and dancing. In a move to "bring the learning experience into the student living room environment," Goodman's class will be taught in the Sigma Alpha Mu house. Of the many reasons for such a move, College Dean Matthew Santirocco said that holding class in a fraternity would help realize the goal of "One University." Presumably, Santirocco was transferring the College's experience with classes that are held in dormitories such as the Classical Studies course that Santirocco holds in the Quad. As is done in these dorm classes, several spots in the 15-person seminar will be set aside for SAM brothers. Yet this is where the difference begins and Santirocco's vision for fostering "One University" ends. So unlike a course which reserves spots for such heterogeneous groupings as majors, BFS students, or residents of a dorm, the SAM class will from the get-go be drawing the bulk of its students from an elite, self-selecting pool. Intrinsically, the class will hardly include anything bordering a representative cross-section of the undergraduate population. It will rob students of the few acres of common ground which we still have. Classes are guaranteed opportunities for people of all backgrounds and ideologies to interact. In particular, seminars such as the one at the SAM house almost require this diversity. Without it, there is no fuel to feed an intellectual fire. If the University is truly committed to strengthening the community, then it must stop fraternity-based classes with set-asides for its members. This only divides the community further by sectioning off students in the classroom – a place where division definitely shouldn't be.

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