Trinity College Top Questions

Most Trinity students are from the New York and Boston areas. Most come from upper middle class families with many from private and boarding schools although the atmosphere is changing a bit. For example, the classes of 2009 and 2008 get very dressed up for classes and I've noticed that less of the 2010 and 2011 classes aren't as into their week-day threads.

It is disheartening to think that any student would fele out of place at Trinity. However, the reality of college, as in life, is that not every college is the perfect fit. I am the stereotype - blonde hair, blue eyes, preppy little girl. However, it bothers me when people feel racially, religiously, etc. on the outside because I have never treated anyone differently based on these things. You are the only one that can make yourself feel inferior.

A lot of white kids and a small minority population that's slowly growing where generally they all know each other.

Trinity get's a lot of negative press about our race relations, however compared to other NESCAC schools we are pretty darn diverse. The most noticeable thing about the Trinity student body is that everyone is beautiful. Honestly, it is stunning returning back to Trinity after visiting another college, just how beautiful and thin everyone is.

While diversity in terms of race is important, Trinity should be taking a closer look at socioeconomic and regional diversity. They are never going to attract new types of students until they break the stereotype of being a school for privileged white kids. Trinity wants racial diversity but they won't get it until they get other types of diversity. The first weekend of freshman orientation there is a speaker who tries to tell the class as a whole some of the statistics about the class, as well as leading students through all sorts of exercises that try to break stereotypes, yada yada. The one thing I still remember was when the woman asked people to stand up for one of these categories: your family always had more than enough, enough, or not enough. more than half of the room stood up for more than enough. you can take that as a bunch of americans acknowledging that almost anyone that lives in this country has more than enough, or you can take that as everyone immediately interpreting those categories as upper, middle, and lower class. there have been some major issues in the last few years involving homophobia and sexism on campus. the trinity tripod, the student newspaper, frequently makes jokes out of sexual assaults and other gender issues on campus. there is a lot of backlash against the only alternative group on campus, The Fred, which was put together several years ago as a way for students unhappy with the party/greek life centered social scene. it is not intended to be anti-alcohol, and is not, but it provides more alternative types of events, where those who are uncomfortable with drinking and excessive partying can feel safe and comfortable. in general, extracurriculars outside of sports are not very strong, with the exception of the greek system. but most clubs and other societies don't have strong followings. any attempts at political activism are largely ignored. if you want a place where it takes less than a year to have recycling bins installed on campus, i suggest somewhere where people give a shit. my guess would be if you average it all out, political leanings are straight down the center.

I would say that any student who is not upper class, straight, and white would feel somewhat out of place at Trinity. I don't know how common this is at other colleges, but people tend to segregate themselves largely by race, or at least students of color vs. white students. There were some instances about a year ago of a few black students having racial slurs written on their doors, as well as a strange incident where a white student went in black face to a Halloween party impersonating/mocking a black person. After this incident, some students of color (mostly black and hispanic) organized an event at the dining hall where they purposely sat at tables of all white students to try to break the pattern. Basically, (and this is coming from a white student!) the white students could be more friendly towards people of color. Only the athletic teams seem to be more integrated. Trinity is a Division III school, but we stilll take sports fairly seriously. Half of the student body participates in competitive sports, and people often make friends based on their sport. Don't believe the admission office when they say that students come from all over the state, generally they come from New England and the Mid-Atlantic area. There are a decent number from California, but coming from CA I still often felt a little out of place. Politically I'd say most students are democratic / central, but I would stilll say there are still more conservatives / more vocal conservatives than most colleges. It probably feels like there are more conservatives than there really are. Most female students are very into dressing in expensive clothing of hte jcrew /seven jeans variety to class. I have some wonderful friends at Trinity, and I am not speaking for the entire student body, but I would say the majority is more close minded, less friendly, and more homogenous than the average student body.

everyone is so nice.

Students are racist, sure, but misogyny and homophobia win the day. Beyond that, the general preppy-ness of the student body contributes to a sense of elitism, which really may be Trinity's fundamental problem: these are stupid rich kids. They feel entitled to everything and strive for nothing.

The basis of on-campus racism lies in exclusion. Since we have such a small community, it is easy for students to feel left out. While it may seem that minority students do not have the same venues in terms of social life, co-curricular activities and access to forums for campus-wide expression, these venues seek leadership. You can create any forum for expression as long as you are motivated. Getting involved is key.

While Trinity has primarily white students, there is definitely a sense of diversity on campus. The various ethnic houses allow students of all races and ethnicities to feel at home. There are various religious houses, as well as an LGBT community. A lot of the students like to "dress up" for class, but many are comfortable and show up dressed down. Because of the diversity, I believe there is a place for everyone at Trinity.