The Rose Scholars program has been an integral part of my life for the past two years. Within the two years that I have been a part of the program, I have seen it change. More events were offered, the Cafe series was moved and the style of doing things was slightly different. One things that I have noticed is that I very much enjoy having a wider array of options in regards to events. Although I still usually attend the cafe, I have also attended other events such as a table talk. Even though the program is small, I would love to see even more variation in the events and types of events. Also, while I do find the smaller size of the cafe to be appealing, the way seating is can make it a bit difficult to see the speaker if you get stuck on one of the sides towards the back.
I think that having a way for the scholars to get to know one another better would be a great idea. Most of us only know a few select others and sometimes these are the people we live by. Even if there were just two or three social events just for Rose Scholars throughout the year, this could allow for better engagement and communication during events. In order to create a sense of community within Rose, it is also necessary to get active participation from those who aren’t Rose Scholars. From what I have experienced, this doesn’t happen too often but I would love to meet other people who are living in Rose even if it is just for the year.
Overall, I think the Rose Scholars Program is a great way to get people involved with the house community and I have enjoyed being a part of the program. It has encouraged me to attend events that I otherwise would not have.
I definitely agree! I think it would be great to have more events where the scholars themselves can get to know each other. Having social events is a great way for us to informally just hang out and share common interests–great suggestion!
“Most of us only know a few select others and sometimes these are the people we live by.” I find this statement to be completely accurate. I know a grand total of five Rose Scholars. All but one of them live in my building–in fact the same section of my building. Three of them live on the same floor as me, and I blocked with two of them. In fact, one of them is my roommate. Before this year (I’m a sophomore, so this is my first year doing Rose Scholars), I knew four of the five Rose Scholars that I know now, and the fifth I met in my building’s common room, not at a Rose House event. I guess my point is, I really don’t know many other people in this program, and I never really felt much of an opportunity to get to know others in this program. Thinking about it, I am fairly certain that most other Rose Scholars are in the same position. For evidence: Remember how Dr. Hill kept encouraging us all to block in a group of five or six for housing for next year, so that we could get a suite in Rose Main? Remember how he said that very few people ever do it, and thus there is always suites available? I am fairly certain that one of the main reasons for this is that most of us do not know of four to five other Rose Scholars that we would want to block with, and I do not think that many of us want to block with strangers. So I definitely agree–having social events can help us to get to know each other.