December 3–5, 2009
The meeting opened with an introduction of committee members. Then followed a Student Assembly presentation by Frances Vernon '10, president, Student Assembly; Cory Cunningham '10, vice president, Student Assembly; and Tina Chang, president, Graduate Student Council (GSC). Tina explained the role of the GSC and that they are working on hosting social events (for all grad students), a dedicated graduate student center, vision and dental insurance for graduate students, improved Advance Transit scheduling, ID cards and discounts for spouses, and a career fair catering to grad students.
Frances reviewed the role of the Student Assembly and talked about current topics the assembly is addressing, such as an "alternative" social space, the Organizational Adjudication Committee, and the current alcohol policy.
Then followed a panel presentation by student-athletes Matt Dinger '10, Men's Rugby Club; Margaret Smith '10, varsity women's basketball; Dan Markowitz '11, varsity men's hockey. The athletes talked about why they chose Dartmouth, how sports play a role in their Dartmouth experience, their respective team's performance, and future plans. This presentation was followed by a briefing by Bob Ceplikas '78, acting director of Athletics. He provided an update on the scope of the athletics program, the varsity sports programs, the priority of rebuilding the football program, the high participation of athletics among undergraduates, physical education and recreation programs, club sports, important considerations regarding the athletic department's budget, alumni giving information, and the costs of the various programs.
Sylvia Spears, acting dean of the College, then gave a presentation on current issues and what is being done about social space, social event management procedures and the new advisory board overseeing those procedures.
Then followed a presentation from Mike Lewis '11 on "Blitzes, Texting, and Facebook: Social Media and the Dartmouth Experience." This was a research project that dealt with communications before and after the introduction of cell phones, Blitz, social networks, etc. The full video can be found here.