“Keep Vassar Weird” campaign fights shift to mainstream

Shahreen Saifi Assistant News Editor

Vassar students tend to take pride in the liberal atmosphere and the tolerant environment that are associated with the College. “Vassar is a comfortable respite for indie-chic students who revel in obscurity,” one student declared to the Princeton Review, which posts the comment on its Web site to describe the school. However, some students allege that the Vassar administration is now downplaying the school’s offbeat personality.

In response, the “Keep Vassar Weird” campaign has sprung up to remedy what it claims is a growing mainstream influence at Vassar.

“I would call ‘Keep Vassar Weird’ a movement,” said Queer Coalition of Vassar College (QCVC) chair Kelsey Smith ’07, one of the campaign’s leaders. “It’s an acknowledgement that we need to make a conscientious effort to hold on to what’s weird about Vassar and to resist homogenization.”

The definition of “weird” in the context of this movement remains ambiguous. The campaign itself uses the term vaguely. On the Facebook group created for the cause, Smith states, “I think that ‘weird’ being undefinable is pretty key. Whatever your brand of not-just-the-mainstream sounds good to me. Maybe finding a way to define ‘weird’ kind of takes away the meaning.”

The movement was organized by students who were unhappy with the way that Vassar is portrayed to applicants, and who generally feel that the College’s Office of Admissions is downplaying its history as a women’s college and its liberal environment in an effort to attract a broader range of applicants. Smith cited Vassar’s exclusion from The Advocate’s list of top 20 Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Questioning-friendly [LGBTQ] schools as a result of the image projected by the administration.

Another one of the campaign’s complaints is that Vassar is not represented to be homosexual-friendly in a way that accurately reflects the campus reality.

Smith pointed out an incongruency in the facts told to visiting students by Vassar tour guides. For example, tour guides explain that the reason behind Vassar’s changing its school colors from pink and gray was the result of a petition by a male sports team embarrassed to play in pink shorts. The Vassar College Encyclopedia, however, states that the change is due to budget cuts in the Athletics Department. Since there is generally a greater stock of maroon shorts than pink shorts, it was cheaper for Vassar to change the colors. Smith claims that this story makes the school more attractive to certain potential students, sending the message that “if you come here, we’ll protect your manhood.”

Dean of Admission David Borus disagreed, saying, “The students who were involved in the ‘Keep Vassar Weird’ campaign may assume that the Admissions Office is against them expressing their individuality, but it’s just not accurate.”

According to Borus, while Vassar may not have been among The Advocate’s top 20 colleges, it was included on the list, a fact that was publicized by a press release in September 2006. Borus also claims that Vassar cannot attend every single college fair to which it is invited, and that it has not yet been invited to a college fair specifically for LGBTQ students.

“We want people to come to Vassar and get an honest view,” said Borus. “We’ve been successful at bringing a broad range of people to Vassar through the years.”

On April 24, during the Open House for prospective students, the campaign held a “Come Out and Play” event in front of the Library to encourage students to “gather in ways that were queer-friendly in particular, but also generally friendly,” said Smith. The event included games such as four-square, kickball and ultimate frisbee.

Campaign members were joined by various other student groups, including the Barefoot Monkeys and QCVC, who convinced a number of admitted students to participate in a game of kickball. Campaign member Judy Jarvis ’07 called it a “return to the playground with a slight agenda.”

Jarvis felt that the event conveyed the message of the campaign. “We aren’t trying to discourage anyone from coming,” she said. “We want to encourage anyone who is looking for a flamboyant and weird community.”

The perceived threat to Vassar’s reputation of “weirdness” was first discussed earlier this year at Feminist Alliance and QCVC meetings. Will Zichawo ’10, who attended the QCVC meetings, said that one suggestion put forward was for gay couples to display affection in front of tour groups.

Director of Campus Life Edward Pittman, who is also in charge of Blegen House, said, “I believe it’s good for students to ask questions about what our community looks like. I also believe that it’s good for students to cooperate with the Admissions Office. Vassar has always been open to diversity.”

Jarvis expects that the “Keep Vassar Weird” campaign will become part of QCVC and that “Come Out and Play” will become an annual event. The campaign has no specific events planned for the future.