By JENNIFER YANG ’12
Layout Editor
On June 5, 2009, 625 seniors will graduate from Wellesley. These seniors, armed with the knowledge of their impending departure, will have ties to break with Community (the forum, not the people), eclectic dining options, and the comforting dinginess of the Quad and the tunnels. Some may even view it as an extended study break. However, members of the Class of 2009 will not be alone in this strange, or strangely freeing, process.
Joy Playter, Dean of the Class of 2009, said, “I have strong feelings for this class and it’ll be hard to let go. I’ve enjoyed watching them grow from sophomore to senior year.”
Playter described them as “an energetic, but not wild, class” and complimented the poise of the seniors in the face of the economic climate.
“This class has a lot of grace over an uncertain future,” Playter said. “I haven’t had anyone come in upset or angry. There’s a flexibility about their plans – ‘Maybe I’ll go to grad school, maybe I’ll waitress for a while’ – they’re floating with it and they’re not freaking out.”
Over their four years here, the Class of 2009 has racked up some impressive achievements, not the least of which includes accomplishing over 50 Things to Do at Wellesley (including a 30-item addendum), spending a record amount of time abroad in nonstandard locations, and living all four years in just one of the over 15 Wellesley residential hall options.
Jennifer Thomas-Starck, Director of International Studies, said, “41 percent of the class went abroad for a semester or a full year. That’s quite low compared to other years. It might be because students did more internships or summer programs or loved Wellesley College more.” However, the Class of 2009 had an impressive range of abroad selections.
Thomas-Starck said, “They had record-breaking numbers in Australia and South Africa. They had relatively lower participation in Wellesley-administered programs, and did more outside study abroad.”
According to Thomas-Starck, “They had really high participation in Oxford and LSE (London School of Economics), which are some tough schools to get into. Those in London tended to choose very tough programs.”
Thomas-Starck also shared a recent piece of exciting news. “We got our first two brand new Chinese government full-year study abroad scholarships [this year]: Kwanza Fisher ’09 and Chanda Wong ‘09.”
Several seniors also shared their most memorable on-campus achievements.
Tiffany Howard ’09 wrote of her positive experience working with Campus Police.
“The highlight of my Wellesley experience and the thing I’ll miss the most (other than my amazing professors) will be working at Campus Police. Working as a dispatch assistant and supervisor for the past four years has allowed me to get to know such a wonderful, dedicated group of people,” she wrote.
Howard added, “Most people on campus don’t realize the daily things Campus Po does for us, and they are truly dedicated and enjoy keeping us safe. Although a few people at Wellesley give the Police a bad reputation (such as complaining about how they did not catch “The Fondler” fast enough), these same people have no clue the extent and overtime the members of Campus Police dedicate to the college. It is so much fun to work at Campus Police and interact daily with the officers.”
Claflin House President Kyla Raetz accomplished 46 items on the list of 50 Things to Do at Wellesley, plans to finish three more before graduating, and also created a personal addendum of 30 More Things to Do at Wellesley, of which she finished all but two.
“It helps to get really involved in things on campus and have a bunch of friends willing to do things with you,” Raetz advised. “I have been doing them throughout my four years at Wellesley, since I heard about it from my Wellesley big sister first year. A lot of them I did just in the course of doing things at Wellesley--attending a sporting event and a Shakes production, hosting prospies and getting kissed by marathon runners. My friend Jessy Randall [another senior] masterminded an all-dining-halls-in-one-day meal plan and the two of us checked that off our lists last week!”
Of the four remaining “official” items and her own two items, Raetz wrote, “I haven’t done dorm or class crew, I haven’t petitioned for a swing to be hung by the chapel, streaked across Severance Green, or gone skinny dipping in Waban. I also want to go sailing on the lake and be part of a campus-wide prank.”
Although she’ll be finishing out what she can, Raetz doesn’t approach the list as a requirement.
“I see it more as a fun way to experience Wellesley rather than a necessary ‘check off list’. I had a lot of things over my years here that I personally wanted to do that weren’t on the list, so I created my own addendum,” she wrote.
As for the current 50 Things list, Raetz proposed some revisions. “In my opinion the chapel swing requirement should be removed and hoop racing should be added. I would also suggest additions like walking around the lake, working Reunion, being in the Police blotter, saving your big sister a spot in hoop rolling, and attending a concert in the pub. I know that there are also slightly different lists circulating around campus.”
Raetz commented that getting a Wellesley little sister was her favorite item on the list, while the easiest was to “send an e-mail to someone in the same room.”
“I would bet that most Wellesley First Years have accomplished that one within the first semester,” Raetz wrote.
Another senior, Dana Britt, approached her exploration of Wellesley in a different way. As a Pomeroy “lifer”, Britt feels her four years in Pom have created a positive Wellesley experience for her.
“Pom has an amazing community and I think Pom has been an essential part of my Wellesley experience. Everyone says ‘Hi’ in the halls, people keep their doors open, and there’s a really good mix of classes. There’s so many cool rooms to explore here that I didn’t need to try other dorms.”
Britt described one example. “In Pom there’s the smallest room in the history of the campus. The ‘jail cell suite’. You can’t open the door without hitting the bed. There’s only enough room for your bed and your desk, and there’s only enough room to go sideways between them.”
“And [Pom] has some of the best singles on campus,” Britt added.
Before their departure, Dean Joy Playter had some advice to give to the Class of 2009.
“I’m giving a speech on Wed., June 3 [for the alumnae luncheon,” Playter began, immediately adding “You’re all invited!” before continuing: “Don’t spend time beating yourself up. They’re all way too hard on themselves. In the scheme of things, making mistakes doesn’t matter.”
“That’s basically the gist of my speech, anyway,” Playter laughed. “They struggle so much with what they see as monumental decisions right now – whether to take this class credit/non, or their GPA – things that won’t really matter. To strive to be perfect, it’s not really living. There’s beauty in imperfection. I hope as they journey through life they figure out what’s important is something that happens as you go [through] the world. Every student here is terrific.”
Thomas-Stark echoed that sentiment. In regard to future travels, she said, “You all are such intrepid travelers already. That’s the nature of Wellesley students generally.”
Some seniors also had parting advice to offer.
Britt said, “Going abroad is my best advice because when you come back you appreciate Wellesley so much. You really look at America and Wellesley a different way.”
“I loved Cambridge; it was an amazing [experience], but you don’t have the same relationship,” Britt explained. “You’re not supposed to talk in class. There’s just lectures for you to go to, then you have hour-long sessions.”
For advice closer to home, or at least the Wellesley campus, Britt added, “You should also write for the newspaper. Not that I’m biased.”