Thursday, February 18, 2010
Media Outreach
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Thursday, February 4, 2010
Hamilton students divided over Great Names and printing; oppose ice rink
By David Foster '10, Kye Lippold '10, and HamPoll Staff
The latest HamPoll student survey shows that a plurality of respondents, 45 percent, would prefer that Hamilton host a second-tier Great Names speaker this semester, while only 35 percent favor canceling the lecture and using the money next year as outlined in the plan announced by the administration. While varsity athletes and A students were willing to wait, 65 percent of seniors called for a speaker this semester. This result reflects many seniors' concerns about losing an important part of their Hamilton experience without a Great Names lecture in their final year; as one senior put it in a comment to the survey, “seniors are missing out entirely as a result of the recent decision.” Several students also expressed regret at the lack of a speaker when the program is, as one student put it, “one that Hamilton advertises as one of its most attractive functions.”
The HamPoll survey allowed respondents to write in a response to the question of what the college should do about the Great Names lecture; 6.4 percent of students wrote in an answer, with the results summarized in the accompanying chart.
Students also expressed their opinions about what types of speakers they would like to see in a Great Names lecture. Comedy and politics led the list with support from about 75 percent of respondents, followed by theatre or film, music, and literature (with only 20 percent expressing interest in religion). Additionally, 56 percent of respondents indicated that the speaker's fame was important or very important in deciding whether to attend the lecture. Controlling for various demographic factors suggests that seniors were much less likely to express interest in fame, again likely due to concerns about having a speaker at all.
The survey also asked students their opinions about some other contentious issues on campus. Students were divided on the new print management program, with 43 percent calling it reasonable and 54 percent calling it unreasonable. However, most students wanted printing prices charged after exceeding the quota to be set lower than the current proposal of 15 cents, with 22 percent calling for 10 cents, 54 percent for 5 cents, and 14 percent writing in a request for no charge whatsoever.
Regarding the outdoor ice rink in the Dunham Quad, fully 90 percent of respondents thought the rink was a bad use of Student Assembly funds. Out of the 500 respondents, 7 students (1.4 percent) said they had used the rink, while 56 (11.2 percent) intended to use it and 87 percent of students had no intention of using the rink.
The survey received 500 responses, for about a 29 percent response rate. The sample over-represented white students and women relative to the overall Hamilton population, while most other demographics were comparable.
The latest HamPoll student survey shows that a plurality of respondents, 45 percent, would prefer that Hamilton host a second-tier Great Names speaker this semester, while only 35 percent favor canceling the lecture and using the money next year as outlined in the plan announced by the administration. While varsity athletes and A students were willing to wait, 65 percent of seniors called for a speaker this semester. This result reflects many seniors' concerns about losing an important part of their Hamilton experience without a Great Names lecture in their final year; as one senior put it in a comment to the survey, “seniors are missing out entirely as a result of the recent decision.” Several students also expressed regret at the lack of a speaker when the program is, as one student put it, “one that Hamilton advertises as one of its most attractive functions.”
The HamPoll survey allowed respondents to write in a response to the question of what the college should do about the Great Names lecture; 6.4 percent of students wrote in an answer, with the results summarized in the accompanying chart.
The survey also asked students their opinions about some other contentious issues on campus. Students were divided on the new print management program, with 43 percent calling it reasonable and 54 percent calling it unreasonable. However, most students wanted printing prices charged after exceeding the quota to be set lower than the current proposal of 15 cents, with 22 percent calling for 10 cents, 54 percent for 5 cents, and 14 percent writing in a request for no charge whatsoever.
Regarding the outdoor ice rink in the Dunham Quad, fully 90 percent of respondents thought the rink was a bad use of Student Assembly funds. Out of the 500 respondents, 7 students (1.4 percent) said they had used the rink, while 56 (11.2 percent) intended to use it and 87 percent of students had no intention of using the rink.
The survey received 500 responses, for about a 29 percent response rate. The sample over-represented white students and women relative to the overall Hamilton population, while most other demographics were comparable.
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