For the first time in its 14 years, the Bridge Program attracted only two males for next year.
The interactive program offers weekly discussions on world affairs between faculty and students in Metcalf Hall.
Three of the roughly 30 applicants who requested to be placed in Metcalf next year as part of the Bridge Program were males, and two of these men accepted their room assignments, Director of Residential Life Yolanda King said in an e-mail. This tally does not include incoming freshmen, who have not yet submitted housing applications.
Each student must go through an application process and receive faculty referral to be accepted into the program.
"The whole point of the Bridge Program is to have students and faculty interact as much as possible," said Ronnee Yashon, the scholar-in-residence and organizer of the program for the past three years.
Neither Yashon nor Dean of Student Affairs Bruce Reitman could explain why there were so few male applicants this year. "It was a surprise to ResLife because it hadn't happened before," Reitman said.
While the Bridge Program's gender gap was unexpected, staff members do not feel it will inhibit next year's program. "There are lots of clubs and activities [on campus] that are skewed in a particular gender direction," Reitman said. "It's not all that unusual."
King confirmed that 38 students have chosen to live in Metcalf next year. Not all Metcalf applicants applied specifically for the Bridge Program. All Metcalf residents are considered part of the Bridge community and are invited to attend events. Yashon expects that other males in Metcalf will join the Bridge Program discussions.
Yashon and other staff members associated with the program plan to make an effort to attract more males for the 2009-2010 school year by encouraging Metcalf residents to reapply and by drawing in more males from the rest of the student body.
Although ResLife has no plans to draw more males for next year, King said they are interested in hearing feedback from male students who chose not to apply to the program.
"It's important for students to get to know faculty well enough so they can keep in touch with them, not to keep long-term relationships, but just to discuss important topics," Yashon said.
Discussion topics range from current events in politics, ethics and education to faculty members' individual roles in local and national issues.
Bridge Program candidates are asked on their applicaitons to suggest several topics they would like to see presented in Metcalf the following year. As residents, they rotate in aiding the resident assistants' preparation for the speakers.
Members of the Bridge Program are required to attend three discussions per semester. Other residents of Metcalf Hall are "encouraged to participate in some of the programs," King said, although participation is not required.
The names of the two males who will be residing in Metcalf as part of next year's Bridge Program were not released.
