The DePauw University bubble is an interesting phenomenon. It has its pros and cons. Regardless of how you view the bubble, you cannot deny that it shapes the DePauw experience.
Nestled in the backcountry of Indiana, miles from any major cities or cultural hubs, DePauw is a tiny oasis of higher learning-- a watering hole in the dry desert of the Heartland. This appeals to a certain type of person: someone that not only has the smarts to hack it here, but who also finds appeal in a university the size of a large high school. That has to mean something.
DePauw is a unique place not for the faint of heart. The intimacy of the campus means that you are constantly under observation. I have yet to go a day, or even an hour, without seeing someone I've met before.
DePauw is, and always has been, for people who don't want to be lost in the masses of a state school. They want to be a public figure on a campus where close contact forces social interaction.
That being said, this characteristic should be where we find our common ground, or the glue that binds us together. But often that is not the case.
We are far, far away from our previous lives and the people that molded us into who we are today. All we have here, besides our education, is ourselves.
Yet, outside forces always seem to leak their way in. Maybe it's something in the food or the water or the Hamm's, but we only think of ourselves as part of the DePauw community when we aren't on campus. When we are here, we are segregated.
We are members of clubs that have two or three Greek letters on the sign above the door, or we're independent. We are part of the majority greek scene, or we are part of the minority greek scene. We're international students, or we're American students.
We feel disenfranchised with the DePauw culture. We feel excluded. We feel like our views aren't valid to the majority of students. We resent the privilege. Or we feel like we shouldn't have to apologize for the fact that our parents have money. We feel like we are immediately judged because of something entirely out of our control. We resent being the bad-guy just simply because of our social position.
These distinctions aren't just superficial. The student body is broken. There are deep divisions on this campus that run along the greek/non-greek, racial and socio-economic lines. Think back to last semester when a tiny thing like a sorority's philanthropy sparked an entire controversy surrounding privilege. There is obviously more resentment here than meets the eye.
So what's the solution?
DePauw is like a little boarding school out in the woods. We all live together, so we might as well get along. We need to rethink why we came to DePauw because at some point, it shouldn't be about "us" and "them," or about the establishment and them.
Right now, DePauw culture is what it is, and the solution is complex. Half of me wants to spark more dialogue, but half of me says tolerate. All I really know is that acceptance is the first step towards a solution. Denying the fact that DePauw is divided will only exacerbate the situation.
-McAndrew is a sophomore English writing and economics double major from St. Louis.