Although they may be lost upon us, Dartmouth’s attempts at turning lofty dreams into obtainable goals take shape in SEAD II (Summer Enrichment at Dartmouth). The three-week program hosting returning inner-city high school students, attempts to expand the participant’s conception of life’s academic possibilities while creating a balanced perspective on college life. Because of this, although the SEAD students are prompted by their classes and academic coaches to embrace education, all of the extracurricular activities are also selected based on their motivating messages to the participants.

In addition to Dartmouth’s attempt to expose the students to academic and cultural influences, the SEAD program allows for the social influence of Greek life. Dartmouth Greek organizations are asked to provide meals for the SEAD students during which the students are able to interact with house members in a relaxed, social environment. The meal, without alcohol or music, stands as an infrequent occasion when the house members stand as role models for high school students. Not only does this present the house with the challenge of preparing a balanced meal for 50 people, but it creates an interesting dynamic.

Adding to the challenge of preparing meals, the responsibility of posing as a role model, however briefly or informally, carries its own weight. For example, when asked about the house’s interaction with SEAD students, Adam Patinkin, vice president of Kappa Kappa Kappa responded: “Since we knew so many kids would be relying on us, it was a task we took seriously. The kids seemed great! We relaxed and played cards while we ate, and generally just hung out with them for an hour or so. It was a good time.”

But more complex thoughts of house members were things like: “Well, if they ask, do we tell them that we drink?” and “Do we have to tell them our honest opinion of life at Dartmouth, or should we enhance it a little?” In training for the program, SEAD mentors were told to be honest, but also to feel comfortable being vague or sparing the details. Mentors as well as house members, I’m sure, had to find those middle-of-the-road responses, avoiding denial as well as the tendency for drinking glorification.

Still, according to Patinkin, the interaction didn’t seem too critical in terms of social influence: “We were only there for an hour or so, so we never really got into our own lives and what we do at Dartmouth. Most of the time we were just talking about the things they do, like their classes, what music they listen to, and things like that.” It seems that such casual first interactions with high school students beat overwhelmingly thought-provoking conversations and were accountable for continued interest in the SEAD program.

Furthermore, the expectations of SEAD students didn’t particularly match their experience at the houses. When asked what her expectations were of “frat boys,” a female SEAD student responded: “I thought they would be rowdy and that the frat would be really dirty. I also thought that they would be all white.” She later said that her conceptions were wrong: the brothers weren’t all white; the house was relatively clean, and the guys just hung out and talked with them. I noted how strongly such a drastic and positive distinction impacted her view of Dartmouth and the college experience.

Really, the motive behind structuring such interactions between Greek organizations and high school students lies anywhere between free food, the elimination of inaccurate misconceptions, and Dartmouth’s desire to throw a hint of its social life into the lives of its young and curious visitors. But the bottom line is that in encouraging high school students to attend college, Dartmouth means to offer a full perspective of college life, one that is academically inspiring as well as socially stimulating. And who can argue that Greek life isn’t socially stimulating?