Themed halls tough to keep alive

Twelve students want to make Native-American culture the subject of a residential program. But while getting one started may be an easy task, maintaining student interest may present a greater challenge.

The proposed program has gained the support of house staff and of Six Directions, a Native-American interest group.

But interest may not be enough. Thirty-seven residential programs already exist, and many of them sponsor very few events, residents say.

The program currently consists of 12 students with a common interest in American-Indian issues who plan to live together in Harrison College House next year; it hopes to grow into a full program in future years.

After the idea for the residential program gained interest, Lisa Bouillion, faculty advisor for Six Directions and faculty fellow in Harrison, proposed it to house staff.

"They were very supportive and excited," she said.

Organizers are planning types of activities typical of residential programs, such as films, trips and guest speakers.

Some residents in other programs, however, don't always feel that their programs accomplish everything they claim to.

"In the beginning, the majority of us did [participate] -- at this point, I'm a little bit doubtful" that residents of the program are still participating, said College freshman Jessica Guzik, a member of the Entrepreneurs' Program in Ware College House.

But students in Six Directions still have hope.

College freshman and Six Directions member Mia King took initiative in getting the program off the ground.

As a current resident of the Living Cultures program, she has some ideas for what she wants the new program to focus on.

King says that how many events a program has isn't the most important thing, but she does hope the American-Indian Cultures program will be more active than others.

"Even if you aren't planning activities every day, you still live with people who share an interest" King said. "Even if [events] taper off, we're still living in a supportive community."

Trouble maintaining student interest may be partly due to the fact that some students only join programs as a way to secure a first-choice housing assignment, Ware Dean Nathan Smith said.

"In [my] program, it seems like there are a few people that are into it, but I'd say the majority of us are just here for the housing," Guzik said.

According to Smith, the effectiveness of the programs reflects the participation and interest of its residents as well as who is in charge.

"If they applied to live there, and didn't participate ... they didn't get anything out of it," he said, "That's not the program's fault."

However, many times, the residential advisers and graduate associates running programs don't have experience with the ostensible subject.

"Certainly, it's also true that sometimes the person in charge doesn't follow through," he said.

But King feels that the real purpose of such programs is to bring people with similar interests together.

King said it is more difficult to attract Native-American students to Penn when potential applicants see that other schools have larger and more active communities.

She hopes that the American-Indian Cultures program "will create more sense of community for the Native-American population," adding that it should be evidence of an active Native-American community at Penn.

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