Outside of town meetings, outside of Greek houses, outside of the pages of newspapers and outside of the classroom, burning campus issues have another forum for discussion. It's not a forum that many underclassmen know about, but it's one that takes issues at the College very seriously.
Each week, members of Fire and Skoal, one of the College's two coed, public senior societies, in addition to Casque and Gauntlet, come together to mull over ideas and argue over the finer points in life. The College currently has seven senior societies.
This May, Provost Lee Bollinger will visit the society to discuss with students the issues of freedom of speech on the Internet.
President Chris Schmidt said, "Fire and Skoal is more of an intellectual based organization as opposed to the Greek system. We have guest speakers and professors at our meetings."
This year, the group was visited by Linda Fowler, director of the Rockefeller Center, who spoke about polling and elections during the New Hampshire Primary.
Writer in Residence Audrey Thomas and English Professor Ernie Hebert spoke to the group about their recent publications.
Mary Childers, director of affirmative action and equal opportunity, addressed the group about sexual assault.
And this spring, as he does every year, College President James Freedman will attend a meeting at Fire and Skoal to talk about how seniors feel after four years at the College, Schmidt said.
Fire and Skoal Treasurer Mark Buschmann said by discussing issues, the society's members gain respect for others' views.
"We want the people in our group to discuss issues that are happening on campus and in the world right now ... We are not just the ears, but the voice of Dartmouth," he said. "We're making sure Dartmouth continues on its track of improving itself."
"Being in the group solidifies your four years here. You realize why you were here. It caps off your experience here," Buschmann said.
Membership
The group has about 30 members each year, who are selected by the outgoing class.
The society is still in the process of tapping, or selecting, new members from the Class of 1997. There are about 20 new members so far, according to Schmidt.
Buschmann said members are selected to represent a diverse section of the senior class and the society provides the opportunity for seniors to meet new students they otherwise may not have met.
Dean of Student Life Holly Sateia, who is the group's advisor, said "Fire and Skoal gives recognition to students."
"It shows you've contributed to the campus if you're chosen to join and it's not always the obvious leaders that are selected," she said.
While Sateia said the group opens some of its meetings to other members of the senior class and serves the campus, it wages an ongoing battle with elitism.
"Not everyone can join Fire and Skoal," she pointed out.
Facilitating intellectual discussion
Buschmann said it is important to stress that all senior societies have their own agenda and their own mission.
"Often, we are grouped with Casque and Gauntlet because we're both coed and public, but our purposes are still different," Buschmann said.
While part of the group's mission is intellectual, it is also social and the two ideas are intertwined.
Fire and Skoal Vice President Kimberly Sanderson said one of the reasons she joined the group was because it is coed.
"I was already in a sorority and on sports teams, so I had all female companionship," she said.
Holly Parker '96 said she had been looking for an opportunity to meet new people her senior year before being invited to join Fire and Skoal.
"You tend to stay within the same group of friends ... and Fire and Skoal is a wonderful group with an automatic 30 people," she said.
The group's meetings "are a great break from work every week. It is an interesting way to facilitate discussion and to use your head outside of the classroom," Parker said.
In addition to holding discussions, Fire and Skoal also plans social events.
Secretary Erin Rowell said the group "had a formal with Casque and Gauntlet, barbecues and movie nights so group members can get to know each other."
Evolution
Sanderson said one of the group's strengths is that it is constantly evolving.
"The group changes with each new delegation that comes in. It changes with the nature of each class," she said.
Fire and Skoal is celebrating 20 years of evolution. It was founded in 1975 by five seniors who wanted to create a group dedicated to social and intellectual pursuits.
The founders, Jim Bildner, Tom Denison, Scott Lochidge, Tom Thomson and Tom Quinn wanted to form a coed forum similar to Elihu at Yale University.
The name, "Fire and Skoal," came from the Hanover Winter Song and points to the group's ideals of spirit of camaraderie and friendship.
The five seniors were granted College recognition. The group's house on 29 South Park Street was purchased in the fall of 1978.
The group was the College's first coed senior society.
"When the society was founded, there was no avenue for men and women to get together to talk outside the classroom about issues facing the College and the world," Sateia said.
"I am very proud of the very strong record that members of Fire and Skoal have, although it was founded not too long ago in '75," she said.
Olympic runners Bob Kempainen '88 and Lindsey Pahs '90 were former members of the society, Sateia said.
Ann Fritz Hackett, former member of the College's Board of Trustees and David Shribman, a current Trustee, both became members of the group in 1976.
Dr. Celia Chen '78, a member of the society, is a research associate in the biology department.
Sateia listed other Fire and Skoal alumni who serve the College, including President of the Alumni Council, Arthur Otho Kerr III '79 and Alumni Council Members, Amy Cholnoky '77, Marian Zishke '84, Craig Bradley '82 and Sherri Carroll Oberg '82.
Elizabeth Appel, assistant director of Alumni Relations, is also an advisor to the group.
