Two years ago, the Trustees announced plans for what is now known as the Student Life Initiative -- supposedly the College's most important change since coeducation in 1972 -- inciting members of the Coed Fraternity Sorority Council to cancel all Greek parties during Winter Carnival and replace the traditional Psi Upsilon fraternity keg jump with a pro-Greek student rally.
But while the anger towards the Initiative put a damper on Winter Carnival '99, the effects on last year's carnival were either subtle or nonexistent, according to many students -- leading one to believe this year's carnival will be no different.
The 1999 announcement threatened the survival of the single-sex Greek system at Dartmouth with its calling for a "substantially co-educational" social life and Chair of the Board of Trustees Stephen Bosworth's statement that the Board would weather any and all opposition to the move.
One student described the plan as having been "prescribed by a group of 40- to 60-year old men and women who think they can plan the social situation at Dartmouth for a group of 18 to 21-year- olds."
The opposition was apparent during the weekend's opening ceremonies.
During President Wright's speech on the Green to approximately 900 students -- many of whom were wearing Greek letters or "Unaffiliated but I support the Greeks" shirts -- heckled and booed when Wright said he would enjoy the weekend despite not being invited to any Greek parties.
Just two days before, the CFSC had voted 23-12 to cancel all Greek events that weekend, a bold statement against the proposed Initiative.
Last year's Winter Carnival, on the other hand, did not exhibit as much open animosity toward the Initiative, although the weekend's theme of "Lest the Cold Traditions Fail" served as a reminder of recent developments at the College.
When asked whether there were any perceived differences between the pre-Initiative Carnival of 1998 and last year's Carnival, many seniors said nothing stood out in particular.
"Carnival won't change much because of the Initiative," said Dean Krishna, a member of Sigma Phi Epsilon fraternity and the Greek Life Committee . "We're always going to find a way to have our fun."
Others were in agreement.
One '01 said she felt there might have been more College-sponsored, non-Greek events last year, but added there were no major differences.
According to Assistant Dean of Residential Life Cassie Barnhardt, any perceived differences "may be the result of the community coming together in looking for more accountability."
In fact, there isn't much evidence to show that things have really changed at all yet for the Winter Carnival tradition.
Although the Trustees' recommendations included the removal of all permanent taps from Greek basements -- which was done this last summer -- houses still follow the same regulations with regards to kegs, according to Senior Associate Dean of the College Dan Nelson.
So where is the Initiative going right now?
According to Dean of the College James Larimore, there are many changes taking place, from improvements in freshmen orientation to the planned establishment of a Kosher/Halal dining area to the planning of the first phase of new residence halls.
In addition, there are several committees working on various elements outlined in the Trustees' recommendations. Two of these committees, the Greek Life Committee and the recently-formed World Cultures Initiative Committee, are preparing to submit reports to the administration within the next few months.
Without any immediate administrative changes imposed by the Initiative and the lack of outwardly expressed opposition last year, students seem to believe this year's carnival will resemble most other recent carnivals.
Students see few indications this year's carnival will be characterized by the vocal opposition of Carnival '99, as the initial frenzy and strong sentiments toward the Initiative have died down.
But to some in the Greek system, this doesn't mean the coast is clear.
"There's this sense of complacency with regard to the security of the whole [Greek] system, but we should never forget that we're under the microscope more than ever," Krishna said. "There will be a comprehensive review in 2005, and we should have made major changes by then or there's going to be trouble."
