Dear President Parrish,
I believe that you are probably already aware that the February 17th meeting of the Task Force on the Learning Environment and Campus Culture was attended by an unusually large number of WPI undergraduates. In fact, there were so many students present that the meeting had to be moved from Higgins 116 to Perreault Hall in Fuller Labs to accommodate everyone in attendance, and even that lecture hall was packed beyond capacity! In all, approximately 20-25% of the undergraduate student body of WPI turned out for the meeting, all with the same issue occupying their minds; the imminent need for a campus center here at WPI.
I was one of the students present at that meeting, and as it took place I felt a growing sense of unease and discouragement overcame the other students in attendance. This general dissatisfaction was a direct result of the information the Committee provided us regarding the decade-spanning history of the "WPI Undergraduate Campus Center Campaign."
Although the faculty and administrative members of the committee openly voiced their agreement with the students regarding the urgent need this community has for a Campus Center, they admitted that they themselves lack the authority to make our desires a reality; the only men and women with the power to place the campus center at the forefront of the capital campaign are the members of our Board of Trustees. President Parrish, as you are an ex-officio member of that Board, the senior member who is involved with the day-to-day operations of our campus, and consequently the one most in touch with the needs and desires of the members of our community, I appeal to you on behalf of WPI's student body to encourage the Board of Trustees to consider making the construction of a Campus Center the primary goal of WPI's upcoming Capital Campaign.
I am not going to waste your time by listing the potential benefits such a building would provide to our campus; I know that you make a sincere effort to keep in touch with what concerns your students and that you also read Newspeak and have probably looked at the flyers that have been pasted up all over campus. Instead I would like to bring to your attention a more subtle aspect of all this Campus Center commotion that I believe has been overlooked by almost everybody: the unselfish nature of WPI student involvement throughout the course of this process.
The students who attended the meeting on the 17th didn't do so with either the intention or expectation of obtaining a campus center within the short time frame of their undergraduate careers at WPI. In fact, in every discussion I have heard pertaining to the construction of the campus center, it has been understood that it is something the current student body will not be around to experience. Still, despite the fact that they will never witness the fruits of their labor, a group of students has been pressing the campus center issue since the late 1960's. Much like the ancient Egyptian and Ethiopian workers who constructed the great pyramids, the only satisfaction these students have gained is the hope that one day the completed monument will exist as a living testament to their endeavors.
It is important to note that unlike the aforementioned workers, there is no Pharaoh to execute us students for not working hard enough, no one save ourselves is directing our efforts. We will continue to petition the administration and the Trustees for a campus center because as students (the true judges of a university's academic and overall quality) we feel that the lack of such a community hub creates a void that WPI must eventually fill if it is to receive the national recognition of which it is worthy.
I believe that the purpose of a top-notch university or college is twofold; first, it must instruct, educate, and adequately prepare its students to perform a service to the outside community in a specific discipline, and more importantly, it must provide a setting in which that student can learn about him/herself and others by interacting in a variety of different and distinctive situations. There is an old adage that only about 10% of what you learn in college comes from a textbook. It has been my experience through road trips to other universities that the proverb is very true indeed.
While WPI does an excellent job at training young minds to understand the nuances and application related to various forms of engineering, it does little to prepare them for interacting within the outside world. In my four years here I have made an effort to involve myself in as many diverse activities as possible, and as a result I have gotten to know hundreds of unique students who have been equipped to lead the engineers of the future. Unfortunately, many of these people will never realize their full potential, for although WPI's stringent curriculum forces them to expand their academic capabilities, it presents virtually no opportunities for the social interaction required to challenge their emotional intelligence.
WPI's concern for equipping its young charges with the latest and greatest in private ethernet connections and access to the world wide web without striving to provide a forum for equally accessible community interaction has inadvertently created a situation in which it had become too easy for students to sequester themselves in their own rooms, limit their personal contact with others, and eventually stifle their own emotional growth. The creation of a campus center would easily rectify this situation and would allow the students to enjoy a considerably more satisfying college experience.
I understand that you have many different aspects of the Institute to consider when establishing policy, and that you must also attempt to view large issues from a myriad of different perspectives. I hope that this letter has given you some insight into the perspective of one student who sees how your involvement and the subsequent creation of the campus center can benefit the WPI community as a whole. Thank you for taking the time to read my letter.
Sincerely,
James Petro Class of '97