I am glad to see that Amherst's admission process works so well that Richa Bhala was admitted and despite a lack of information and coaching about Amherst, chose to matriculate. Perhaps Bhala should consider how much alumni support helps to defray the cost of Bhala's education-indeed, every Amherst student's education. I'm certain the alumni and development office could help Bhala gather that information. I'm also willing to bet that legacies as a group are statistically stronger admission candidates than the general applicant pool, without taking legacy status into account. Sure, they're also more likely to come from privileged backgrounds, perhaps where resources and parental attention were applied in a manner that placed greater emphasis on academic achievement, intellectual growth and overall curiosity. So what? That makes the selection process a little easier for the admissions committee, and while the goal isn't to ease the committee's burden, its members do have a real challenge as they try to distinguish candidates from one another.
Maybe I've missed something, but the system worked well in Bhala's case: Bhala managed to attract the committee's attention and to secure a place at Amherst. Despite lacking many of the advantages that legacies enjoy (I note however, that Bhala's non-Amherst -alumnus father was an integral participant in the application process), Bhala is enrolled at Amherst and seems to be having a marvelous time. In the long run, the current system will work well for Bhala, just as it has for generations of Amherst families. In 20 or 30 years, when there are not-so-little Bhala legacies applying to Amherst and they have a leg up on the non-legacy competition, I wonder if the strident tone and self-righteous pap will have mellowed somewhat.
A final note to Bhala: Try to take life a little less seriously (or at least take Amherst as an institution less seriously). Isn't there Tap somewhere on campus tonight?
Jonathan Yellen '89
AAS senators deserve praise
On Thursday, Nov. 20, I watched a fiasco unfold in the Red Room. The Association of Amherst Students (AAS) debated the proposed spring 2004 club budgets: round two (round one took place the preceding Monday night, for those of you who have not been following the spectacle yourselves). The full senate hacked away at the budget of the ski team, one of the College's competitive club sports. Some of those funds were then reallocated to organizations and publications that were originally not given spring budgets by the Budgetary Committee (BC). However, I do not want to debate the merits of the ski team or The Hamster in this letter. I am sure others will in this issue of The Student, but it is not what I think is most important after witnessing the previous week's AAS events.
Most people who are involved with student organizations on campus do not seem to understand or respect the BC's job. I have had to interact with the BC many times this semester for budgetary requests for a few different clubs. Sometimes the requests were funded in full, other times not at all, but overall I have always been pleased with the committee. You win some, you lose some, but holistically, the BC does a great job. Everyone needs to stop whining.
Students seem to forget that despite the overwhelming wealth of Amherst College, the Budgetary Committee does not have access to all of it. For the spring budgets, campus organizations asked them for three times the amount of money that they could potentially allocate. Clearly, few groups could be funded in full. The committee has continually tried to give most organizations and club sports enough money so that they can run their respective activities effectively. The BC eagerly funds speakers and other events, but bases the allocation on expected attendance. Furthermore, they attempt to reward groups that are well organized and events that are well planned. What more can we expect of their guiding principles and objectives?
None of the budgets I helped to create were allocated fully. Many discretionary requests that I have submitted were only funded partially or sometimes not funded at all. But at the end of the day, I know how hard the members of the committee work and that my requests were thoughtfully considered.
They know that they have one of the toughest jobs on campus. In fact, they are 10 of the most underappreciated people on campus. But I am grateful for them and the work that they do. Thank you to Rania, Ethan, Roz, A.J., Molibi, Christina, Mira, Matt, Paris and Ryan for your dedication to the BC, the AAS and the school community. It does not go completely unrecognized.
Pem Brown '06