A Response to New College
September 4th, 2007 by max linsky in Editor's DeskThis column will appear in tomorrow’s CL.
Last Thursday, less than 24 hours after our College Guide issue hit stands, my inbox started filling up with e-mails from students at New College of Florida. Nearly 6 percent of the student body took the time to voice their extreme displeasure with the piece we ran on their school; the least I can do is offer those students a response and our readers a clarification.
Here’s the crux of the issue: The kids felt that by writing about parties held on campus, we had invited the entire Suncoast community to events that are strictly reserved for students and their friends, and that by doing so we’d put the campus in danger. So let me say this as clearly as possible: If you don’t go to New College, you’re not allowed to go to their parties. As one student put it, “New College is for New College. Period.†*
There’s some important context behind their collective response, context we weren’t aware of when the article ran. Over the past few years, New College has beefed up security in general, and around these parties in particular, in response to trouble caused by non-Novocollegians. In their letters, students passionately described how important it is that their parties be free of “sketchy townies,†a term used over and over again in the e-mails.
I understand that feeling safe on campus is a vital part of keeping the place vibrant, of allowing students to express themselves as freely as so many Novocollegians do. Dozens of the e-mailers referred to New College as a family, and to its campus as their home. I remember feeling that way at school myself. Had we known of the continued safety threat students and administrators feel from the outside community and the steps they’ve taken to protect themselves, we would have made sure readers knew they weren’t welcome. I’m sorry that we didn’t.
But we also didn’t invite the entire Suncoast population to the parties, as nearly every student claimed last week in their e-mails.
Our package on the University Row schools — New College, USF Sarasota-Manatee and Ringling College of Art and Design — was meant as a guide for freshmen: The headline was “So Frosh and So Clean,†the deck “Everything you need to know for your first year of college.†Did we expect it would only be read by freshmen? Of course not — we also thought our readers would be interested in a peek into student life. Did we extend those readers an open invitation to attend campus-only events? Absolutely not.
We also mentioned great professors — nobody complained that we were telling non-students to audit classes. While we wrote that certain parties happened weekly and that others were tied to Halloween and Valentine’s Day, we did not mention dates or times — something we include with every event we list in the paper — despite the fact that the dates of the Halloween and Valentine’s parties are accessible to the public on New College’s website. (The school calls them “Traditions.â€) And while I made a joke in the package’s introduction about going to a party on campus myself, it was intended as just that — a joke.
Finally, we weren’t the only ones to miss a piece of context here; several students wrote to tell us about the excellent academics at New College, as though we didn’t already know. Creative Loafing writes about the pursuits of New College students more often than any other publication in town — a few weeks ago alum Aidan Delgado appeared on our cover — and we’ll continue to do so.
*In the print version of this story, this line was mistakenly printed in all caps.
Send to a friend:
September 4th, 2007 at 5:13 pm
Thanks! I didn’t send an email, but I think your response to all the ones sent by new college kiddies was very appropriete, they can really honk their horns when they feel justified and opportunistic. While “sketchy townies” are sometimes trouble, it is important for you to know, I think, that such townies would never be on campus if students din’t invite them; most “sketchy townies” that get tresspassed are brought on campus by current students, students, who, in my experience, usually end up dropping out sooner or later.
Also, campus isn’t all that great, it’s a bit cult-ish and too ritualized for my taste; I am happy to say I live off campus. New College is great, it’s the only school I applied to, and the only school I think I could have ever successfully spent my first four years of higher education at, that’s just my learning style. I am a third year who plans on graduating, I feel confident i will too, specifically because I am off campus and I don’t constantly have to deal with students who have gotten sucked into the new college drug culture.
I love my school, and some of my fellow students, I just thought you should know that there are people who go there who don’t exactly fit into the new college mold. And I am proud to be one of those people. Plus the food there suuuuuuuuucks and when you break down the expenses of living on campus, it costs between $700-900 dollars a month to live there, usually more, and I think that’s bullshit.
Have a great day!
Jillian Walker, 3rd year, Environmental Studies AOC
September 4th, 2007 at 6:26 pm
One thing I was amazed at was that the longest running dance party that has been running for over 2.5 years in Sarasota (called DIRT,) that caters specifically to college/artist/alternative tastes by playing cutting edge new dance music was never mentioned. DIRT has become a Tuesday night institution, and is what has helped put places like the now defunct Tavern on Main and Pastimes Pub on the map for people that like their nightlife more sophisiticated and more interesting.
September 4th, 2007 at 6:29 pm
Thanks for the response. I was one of the hosts of the mentioned Body Art Wall last year. Last year our party got shut down early after the campus cops had to deal with several problems involving drunk and disrespectful townies (problems including violence, attempted rape and robbery). I wish we could invite everyone onto our campus and let everyone have a good time, but it consistently causes problems and as many have said, it is our home. We are very sensitive about our security problems.
On the other hand, New College students love to be up in arms. After the panic subsided we all went back to reading Creative Loafing and enjoying the good work you do. Thanks for presenting multiple sides of New College and responding to our concerns.
September 4th, 2007 at 8:40 pm
What about a goodwill gesture of having those crazy kids over to your place for a party? Free hugs?
September 5th, 2007 at 10:44 am
We also mentioned great professors — “nobody complained that we were telling non-students to audit classes.”
What is it that you want us to say to you? Do you want us to say, “Poor you. New College is picking on you. Poor you. Poor Max?” This is your job, you write, and you write about things that should be known, not where to find drunk, naked people to prowl on.
“While we wrote that certain parties happened weekly and that others were tied to Halloween and Valentine’s Day, we did not mention dates or times”
Usually Halloween and Valentine’s day events happen around, Oh, I don’t know, Halloween and Valentine’s day. That, and Walls “Weekly weekend jams;”
Let’s see.
Weekly = Occurring every week! My lord, I say! Gasp!
Weekend = Friday, Saturday! MY LORD, I SAY! GASP!
YOU MEAN TO TELL ME EVERY WEEK, EVERY FRIDAY AND SATURDAY?!
Yes?
Wait, no, you didn’t : “we did not mention dates or times” You simply mentioned enough information with anyone that has a brain to read the article and who can count their fingers. Unfortunately, we here at New College really want illiterate 5 year olds to take care of and baby sit them, but there’s not much a difference when there are, oh, a plethora of overly inebriated townies knocking things over molesting people. Pathetic.
This college is a shining beacon of hope and safety for the students who worked their proverbial asses off to get here, and to be protected and safe.
And what’s worse?
You don’t care. Because this place, where so many people would die to go you only deign to write about.
And you want to know why we do not kiss you on the forehead and give you a gold star on your homework at the end of the day.
September 5th, 2007 at 11:59 am
Not only did you completely sidestep the issue, you made many moot points which only further proved that you do not care about New College at all but simply want to use our parties as writing material. Advertising professors attracts quite different people than advertising parties. One of them attracts assholes who want to pray on college girls (and sometimes guys) and one of them attracts people who want to learn. Guess which is which.
Just because our parties are held regularly (thanks for telling the 4 remaining people who didn’t know just when they are, too) does not make them a public event. We don’t need you to advertise our parties. Don’t play the victim, own up to what you’ve done.
September 5th, 2007 at 12:52 pm
Is it really a “moot point” that New College advertises the specific days of the Halloween and Valentine’s Day parties on its own website?
September 5th, 2007 at 2:12 pm
“Is it really a “moot point†that New College advertises the specific days of the Halloween and Valentine’s Day parties on its own website?”
What do you think is more likely to happen:
Reading the state-wide creative loafing article [Imagine that!]
or
Trolling the terribly designed ncf website intentionally looking for party dates, which would also take some pre-meditation (hey, a newspaper article might just give the biggest clue!) to even know to look for it [Where ever they might be. I'm a student, and I do not know where they are.]
Use common sense. This is one of the most terrible, poorly thought out arguments I’ve seen in a while.
September 5th, 2007 at 2:27 pm
The point isn’t where someone is more likely to get the information. It’s the simple fact that New College chooses to provide information on the parties on a public website, when, if it were such a big issue, the school could easily restrict that information to password-protected sections of the site.
September 5th, 2007 at 2:30 pm
Yes, but they would have to KNOW that they were there in the first place.
And if they didn’t, you just told them.
September 5th, 2007 at 5:33 pm
“Advertising professors attracts quite different people than advertising parties. One of them attracts assholes who want to pray on college girls (and sometimes guys) and one of them attracts people who want to learn.”
I read the article, found it entertaining, but have absolutely no interest in the parties at, in or around New College, nor do I find your point valid whatsoever.
First, the tiny article was an editorial piece, not an advertisement…an advertisement is quite different-get it straight. It’s common knowledge the parties exist, the piece seemed to be simply a TINY peek into what the parties at New College were about-I think the student body there is delving just a tad too far into this. Further, to say anyone who reads CL and doesn’t attend New College, is inclined to make New College a destination to harrass and molest college girls is completely absurd. Grow up, quit being such a pussy and get back to your studies.
As a college graduate, I find it completely disrespectful and ignorant that a mass of college students refer to Sarasota (your host city) as such a haven for molesters and ’sketchy townies’. My college days were spent embracing the commuinity around campus-good, bad or otherwise…it’s part of your experience like it or not.
September 5th, 2007 at 8:46 pm
Thank you, Jack.
September 6th, 2007 at 10:48 am
I for one think it’s fucking hilarious that in the same issue they apologize for inviting Sarasota to New College, they advertise a concert happening on campus without contacting the students organizing the show. They even run a picture that takes up a third of the page, which happens to be the picture that the students used to advertise the show privately.
“Did we extend those readers an open invitation to attend campus-only events? Absolutely not.”
I feel like including “New College” under the parties section of Ringling qualifies as an open invitation.
“We also mentioned great professors — nobody complained that we were telling non-students to audit classes.”
How about when you claimed Aron Edidin talked psychedelia? The article is full of unsubstanstiated rumors - last year’s “contentious” PCP, the bike shoppe mechanics throwing large-scale protests? None of that is at all true, and it’s clear throughout the article that you don’t care about accuracy.
Personally, I do feel New College can be too clique-ish, and I actually don’t mind my show being advertised. My problem is you’re being straight with us. Both your article and your excuse is misleading, offensive and poorly written, and as an aspiring journalist I’m embarrased.
September 7th, 2007 at 7:57 am
Can someone say “SELF IMPORTANT!†As if New College was the only place in the whole country where strange people come to find hot college girls.
and will someone please get unimpressed NCF into a history class, so he/she can learn the word “fascism”. Public information is public, no matter where it is.
What a bunch of whiners. You guys are worse than Yalies.
September 7th, 2007 at 8:53 am
HAHAHA
September 8th, 2007 at 11:01 am
Wow and to think I used to bitch about covering tea parties in South Sarasota country clubs!
“Elitist old coots and biddies,” I’d say …
Man what a walk in the park. The blue blood geriatric set has nothing on elitist college punks.