Of the hundreds of thousands of people with tragic, gut-wrenching, and inspiring stories of the impact of Hurricane Katrina, I surely rank somewhere near the bottom of that (too long) list my three hour delay at the St. Louis airport.
Waiting at the gate alone while my parents stayed an extra night for my younger sister's freshman move-in, I went to a newsstand to stock up on reading and came out with Newsweek's "America's Hot Colleges" edition, 200 pages with the promise of distraction and maybe even some praise for my future alma mater. Tufts has never been a superstar on ranking lists in the same way as other comparable schools, but surely we were still a "hot" school, in high demand and on the rise. I was certain that Newsweek would look beyond the numbers to extol our values like such a hidden (or not so hidden) gem as Tufts merits.
A glance at the table of contents that included special reports on certain schools' achievements and students' journeys yielded no stories out of Medford, but I was not disheartened. The top 25 "hottest" schools...no, but 25 is a pretty small number and you never know. Hottest for International Studies, here we go... Middlebury, hmmm. Top selective schools... no; quality of life, active student body, best food... negative. The magazine was a 200-page love-fest brimming with praise for all the schools that Jumbos have turned down to be Jumbos, that are considered comparable or lesser schools in terms of academics, prestige, and student life, and the word "Tufts" cropped up twice: once in a 2-sentence blurb about a sports statistics class (which I understand filled up in about 14 seconds) and finally in the alphabetical list of the "367 most interesting colleges," where the glowing description went so far as to include our Early Decision deadline and the address of the admissions building.
Now, if my airport analysis seems somewhat narrow, the front-page Daily article (Thursday, Sept. 8) should leave little doubt that this is on the minds of many on campus, faculty and students alike. Many of the rankings discussed in Newsweek were not calculated by a formula at all (where charm, intensity, and attitude do not express themselves as well as money, research, and ratios), but by peer evaluations. Even within the academic community, when asked to list the top schools for various areas, members of the faculty and staff at other institutions consistently failed to remember our Light on the Hill.
What is it about this world-class university, a top choice for some of the country's most competitive and high achieving students, that so eludes the eyes of mainstream critics, academic peers and rankings? What in the mystical calculus of college evaluation is to blame for such a conspicuous absence in rankings, anecdotal articles, Dateline specials, or any other form of mainstream or academic praise?
Of course Tufts' numbers aren't bad; of course Tufts is a highly-regarded and prestigious university; and of course our less-than-stellar endowment has more than a little to do with how this school is viewed when compared to its cash-heavy cousins. Other factors, such as the lack of a business or law school and small graduate programs, weigh heavily as well. A final and very important caveat, and one that I certainly hope readers will keep well in mind, is that superficial praise is ultimately trivial (at least for current students) and has little impact on the exciting, enriching, and perspective-broadening experience of a Tufts education. That being said - come on, where's the love?
I wouldn't hazard any hard conclusions as to why Tufts' image in the broader academic community and the nation is so under-represented, and I would not be unduly offended by it. After all, we still benefit from all that Tufts has to offer regardless of the experience Newsweek says (or rather does not say) we are having. In fact I might be satisfied to accept the situation for what it is but for this rumbling of school pride in my gut. This University is able to attract an incredibly gifted, active, and diverse pool of applicants, to say nothing of a large and growing one.
I could involve myself in twice as many extracurricular endeavors and with twice the energy and still feel like an underachiever from talking to and reading about (in campus media) the countless initiatives and accomplishments of members of this community. Drawing freshman classes from so similar and overlapping a batch as our more lauded neighbors, fostering an environment of intensity and openness both academically and otherwise, and generally doing what seem to be all the things a great university should do, we have something special. Some of the people taking part in college evaluations, lists, and all the rest should take a closer look.
