From deliberation to toleration

Author: Aylie Baker

Gender-neutral bathrooms. Mandatory diversity symposiums. An environmental honor code.

On Saturday Sept. 8 incoming first-years grappled with such issues in the annual Deliberate Dialogue orientation event, exchanging ideas but also emerging with tangible solutions.

Kelly Bennion '10 was one of roughly 80 facilitators who arrived before the start of orientation to undergo training and prepare for discussion. After a positive experience with Deliberate Dialogues in her own orientation, Bennion decided to return early and lead a discussion this fall.

"I really enjoyed it," said Bennion of this year's discussion. "Hearing everyone's viewpoints makes me challenge my own and even if I don't necessarily agree with what the other person says it forces me to reaffirm why I believe what I do."

Upon arriving at Middlebury, students were asked to choose from three discussion topics - "What role should gender play on Middlebury's campus?" "How should Middlebury instill Environmental Responsibility in our students?" and "How should Middlebury support and sustain a respectful multicultural community?"

While in past years discussion topics have largely centered on broader issues, this year the focus narrowed, as participants tackled issues directly applicable to the college environment. As facilitators posed different hypothetical situations, students began to delve into the different issues, exchanging differing ideas but also posing tangible solutions.

"The connection to Middlebury made the issues real and it was nice to see students begin to develop practical solutions," remarked Bennion.

"Choosing approaches that were specifically Middlebury issues was an excellent idea," agreed fellow facilitator, Rachel Pentecost '10.5. "Students were more invested in the dialogue, especially considering that reflections were recorded and passed onto the Dean of Environmental Studies."

In addition to encouraging further action, Deliberate Dialogues effectively mirrored the College's dedication to fostering an open environment.

"I think Deliberate Dialogue is really beneficial to the Middlebury community because it shows the first years students right from the beginning that they need to respect each other's points of views, " said Bennion.

Yet ultimately, it seemed the Deliberate Dialogues only reaffirmed the intellectuality and candor of the incoming first-year class. "It's comforting to know that the members of the entering class were already so open and understanding," said Bennion.