Recommendation 2 - Create Other Spaces and Programs for General Use
Although the committee believes that a great deal of social life on campus could shift to clusters under the approaches described above, we think there will be additional needs for new social spaces across the campus. The committee has made no effort to specify the precise siting or architectural design of any facilities. Rather, our objective is to present the conceptual view of a new integrated residential and social life system for Dartmouth.
Prior to the announcement of the Student Life Initiative, the administration retained Centerbrook Architects and Planners to study and present alternative preliminary architectural designs of facilities to replace Dartmouth's aging dining (Thayer Hall) and recreation (Alumni Gymnasium) buildings. The Centerbrook project has also considered student needs but has not been charged with the full breadth of the committee's task. In particular, residential life has been outside the purview of the Centerbrook project. Therefore the siting and architectural decisions of the Centerbrook project should be reformulated after the adoption by the Board of Trustees of its plan for the Student Life Initiative. In particular, the committee's recommendation of major additions to social space associated with residences, especially the common houses, may allow for a smaller and less dense central facility than that presently conceived by Centerbrook.
- Central dining. Large dining capacity in the center of campus should continue as a prominent feature of the Dartmouth dining system. The precise configuration of the central dining facilities will change from today's as part of the necessary remodeling and modernizing of Thayer Hall and its possible incorporation into an expanded central student center effectively combining Collis, Robinson and Thayer. The central dining facility should offer a variety of styles of dining and should remain adaptable to changes in student preferences over time. The central dining facility should remain open during most of the day and evening. It should feature contiguous gathering spaces to facilitate its role as a campus crossroad.
- Secondary dining facility for the north end of campus. An additional full service, though smaller, dining facility should also be created to serve the north end of campus. This new facility would replace and greatly improve on the existing Café North and would provide an additional campus dining option analogous to the existing Collis and Courtyard options. In order to invite its use by the broadest possible population, it should not be incorporated into any new cluster or other building.
- Additional dining options. While most main meals may continue to be consumed in these large facilities, other new food options should also be created especially for hours other than main meal times. These options should be available at places where students tend to be at those hours. Locations for such snack bars might include residence cluster common houses, certain academic departments (especially those that remain active late at night) and certain libraries (such as the snack bar already planned for the new Berry library addition). Snack carts at high traffic locations and times should also be considered. In addition, more options and support for kosher dining should be provided.
- Enhanced College catering. Aside from dining spaces, a lower cost alternative to the Hanover Inn catering system should be devised. This capability would facilitate affordable group dinners, teas, etc. on a periodic basis for residence clusters, clubs, academic gatherings and other groups.
- Licensed alcohol venues. The committee supports the establishment of additional locations for the licensed sale of alcoholic beverages. Collectively, several such outlets would provide much more opportunity than exists today for the responsible and legal consumption of alcohol. In the long run, we suggest at least three new venues: a new facility larger than the Lone Pine tavern in any expanded student center, a tavern in a new graduate student center (see below), and possible alcoholic beverage service along with evening meals at a new north campus dining location. Since none of these alternatives will be available soon, we suggest the immediate, but temporary, opening of a new licensed alcohol outlet attractive to students of legal age, perhaps in the former Hanover Inn Tavern (now known as The Drake Room). In addition, licensed sale of alcohol should be available on a catered basis in conjunction with large social functions involving significant numbers of legal age students.
- Large flat-floor hall. The committee recommends the establishment of a large hall to accommodate up to 1,100 seated students. The space should be flexible, with no permanent seating and with moveable partitions. It should have a stage and audio/visual equipment for entertainment performances and presentations, but should normally not require especially skilled crews for its more general use. Students should be involved in the scheduling and management of this facility. The hall could be either free standing or incorporated into an expanded student center, but should definitely be centrally located on the campus.
- World Cultures Initiative. One of the central goals of the Student Life Initiative has been to "provide opportunities for greater interaction among all Dartmouth students." The value in this interaction is for students to learn about the many different cultures that they will meet in our increasingly diverse nation and as they travel our seemingly shrinking world. Many provisions of the committee's recommended program are intended to promote these interactions. However, relying solely on casual interactions may be inadequate in at least two respects. First, the interactions may be too diffuse for significant learning to occur. The committee heard from students that such reliance burdens the few representatives of minority cultures within each setting (not only residences and social settings but also classrooms) with the constant responsibility for teaching others about these different cultures. Moreover, the ability of campus programs to respond to inevitable periodic incidents of cross-cultural misunderstanding would be greatly facilitated by additional resources.
- For these reasons, the committee recommends that a committee be established immediately to formulate an appropriate program to promote cultural understanding. For the sake of ease, we will refer to this as the proposed World Cultures Initiative. Without pre-empting this new group's charter, the committee has several guiding suggestions garnered from its deliberations. The initiative should not be housed in a free-standing building, although it would almost certainly require some space in a central location. The committee received ample feedback that such buildings at other universities had generally failed to achieve the goal of weaving diversity into the fabric of these institutions. The committee recommends that the programming not be directed toward minority groups, but rather that it be directed toward helping the entire community—students, faculty, administrators and townspeople—learn about world cultures. Such cultures might include national, religious, racial, ethnic or gender groups.
- In essence, the World Cultures Initiative would represent a commitment by the College in the form of permanent staffing, funding and space to continuously provide enriching programming for the benefit of the entire community. The programming might include exhibits in a central space, lectures, discussions, performances, meals and social functions. The initiative would also work with Dartmouth's academic departments to seek ways in which diverse cultural perspectives might be further incorporated into courses and research. It might develop a multifaceted survey program that could be offered for credit toward a revamped physical education requirement in a manner parallel to that suggested below as an alternative for alcohol education.
- New arts spaces. New spaces for small-scale art and music performance and rehearsal should be created. Included among these should be areas for film-viewing, small dramatic and dance performances, as well as graphic arts and design studio work. These spaces could be located in an expanded student center and/or in selected common houses, but should be available for use by all students and be controlled by students.
- New recreational space. The committee recommends a new recreation and fitness center as part of the necessary rebuilding of Alumni Gymnasium. This center should include expanded fitness equipment, an indoor track, gymnasium space (basketball, volleyball, etc.), racquetball courts, bowling lanes, improved swimming and diving facilities, and additional climbing walls. In order to enhance student interaction surrounding these activities, a snack area should be incorporated into the fitness center.
- Consideration should also be given to placing one or two smaller installations of fitness equipment closer to where students live. These areas would be available for use at hours when the fitness center is not open and for occasions when students have time limitations but want to exercise.
- A variety of opportunities exists to better utilize Dartmouth's appealing outdoor environment for recreational and fitness use. These opportunities include lighted jogging paths, outdoor basketball courts, hiking and mountain biking trails. Opening the underutilized College Park section of campus (the high wooded area bounded by the Bema, the physics and chemistry buildings, and North Park Street) might assist these efforts. In view of the use of the campus during the summer, further development of the Connecticut River waterfront should be pursued.
- Space-use clearinghouse. Both existing and new social spaces must be controlled in a manner that is responsive to student needs and that makes them available to most student groups on campus. To make this a reality, students must be readily able to identify appropriate spaces for their functions and should not be excluded from using space that is underutilized. The committee recommends the formation of a central space clearinghouse to identify availability of alternative spaces and the appointment of a space coordinator to oversee facilities usage.
- Programming coordination. Especially with the creation of large new social "organizations" in the form of the new residence clusters, there will be a multiplicity of programs available for students on many days and nights. A mechanism is needed to coordinate programming and funding for students. To this end, the committee recommends formation of a student-run committee with representation from the various groups that produce campus social programs. This committee would maintain an evolving program calendar and would discuss and resolve developing conflicts or holes in the schedule.
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