THE GREEK APPEAL

Past of the appeal, to me of Dartmouth and one of the reasons why I applied there was that I wanted and expected a kind of fan, rollicking, fraternity based social life. Dartmouth had a distinctive atmosphere. It wasn't Yale or Brown or Smith.! thought it would be a fun place, and I wasn't disappointed.

I pledged Tri-Delt as a freshman and stayed in all four years. That was a unique time at Dartmouth. There hadn't been many sororities on campus when I arrived. We added something like three or four houses during the years I was there. I was part of the first pledge class for Tri-Delt. We had a real sense of building traditions, of building new kinds of structures and organizations. That was an important experience: feeling like we were a part of history, that we were leaving si in lulling behind that would be of lasting benefit to the classes to come.

There were various groups on campus that seemed outraged by what was happening on campus, especially politically andin the Greek system. They were upset about a lot of the things that I thought made Dartmouth Dartmouth. I rem ember wishing that these people wouldn't come to a school I loved and try to change it. Why hadn't they gone someplace else where they would be more comfortable to begin with? Of course, the irony is that probably a lot of guys were saying the same thing when the first women came to Dartmouth.

I don't know how Dartmouth would have been for women who were shy, more laid back, or more easily intimidated by guys. And I don't know if their experiences would have been different at any other school. But I was never one of those girls who sat in the back of the classroom afraid to raise my hand. I've always been willing to voice my opinions. I had a great time.

Karen Hill is a producer at CNN in Atlanta.