Rochester Institute of Technology - Techmila / Ramikin Yearbook (Rochester, NY)

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HOLZEMtH

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sure do know how to party, is often heard on campus. Besides their superior ability to organize a party, the Greeks know how to enjoy one, too. Although just as much planning may go into an independent event, somehow, they just don't match the style of most Greek events. The relaxed, homey' atmosphere of each 'house' and the knowledge that each brother truly looks on all the others as family' creates a relaxed atmosphere where everyone has the confidence to enjoy himself. The Greeks feel that they improve campus life by sharing these parties with the other students, But in criticism of the Greek parties, some independents claim this relaxed atmosphere exists only because the brothers are so much alike, and that little cultural and social diversity can be tolerated in a frat. Unfortunately, the Greeks are also accused of dropp- ing their sense of responsibility off on the way out the door of the 'house.’ While Greeks always police their own parties effectively, some Greeks are suspected of exceptional rowdiness at independent events. Take care of our own' is the suspected attitude, justified or not. In spite of all this controversy, what would happen if fraternities and sororities were banned from the RIT campus? The experience of the state university system of New York is a fair indication of what might happen. Recently, the trustees of the New York University system ended a twenty- three year ban on national fraternities and sororities because of student pressure. According to one student at the University of Stony Brook, 'There were not enough organizations on campus to get people together to socialize. A lot of people just stayed in their rooms and kept to themselves. ' Certainly, SA and RHA would have to do a lot more than they do now to take up the slack in social and cultural programming. Besides, the lack of loyalty to either of these two student organizations would make it very dif- ficult to match the efficiency and ex- cellent planning of Greek-sponsored events. Although the Greeks may have a few secrets of their own, it is no secret that the RIT community would be the loser if the Greeks were ever banned from the campus — besides, who would everybody complain about? -RUSS HARRIS 31 HOL2EMER

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DEAF-HEARING INTEGRATION: Integration” is an important yardstick for measuring the success of the NTID experiment. NTID was es- tablished specifically to educate large numbers of deaf students within a college campus planned primarily for hearing students. The NTID monthly magazine claims that NTID is a college of RIT, just like the College of Business or the College of Engineer- ing. But the RIT students know this statement stretches the truth. There is still a wide breach of misun- derstanding between the deaf and hearing on this campus. But the im- portant question to ask is: are we making progress, or are the deaf becoming an isolated minority, in- sulated from the rest of the campus? The people we talked with differed widely in their opinions on the success of deaf-hearing integration, Several people pointed out that integration is very difficult because of the lack of ac- tive programs on the part of the ad- ministration. They felt that the burden of communicaton was left to the deaf, and that therefore, they had become isolated. Others pointed out that within the deaf community itself, there is a wide range of opinion about how much integration is desirable. Deaf student opinions run the gambit from those who don't wish to associate with their fellow deaf students, to those who are completely committed to the deaf community and refuse to venture far from its security. But the majority of deaf students take the middle road; they appreciate the chance that the RIT campus offers for integration with hearing students and hope to continue to develop their language skills. Unfortunately, there are still many instances of the hearing students in- tolerance for those different than themselves. Specifically, the October- fest incident after which a group of deaf students were accused of pushing and demanding free beer became an emotional issue in the campus media. That some of the criticism was so virulent showed there is still con- siderable animosity towards the Deaf at RIT. But inspite of this and other unfor- tunate incidents, there are signs of some progress. George Kamper's in- itiative in starting the photo house and some positive attitudes by ad ministrators and professors suggest that there are aware and dedicated peo- ple working for deaf-hearing integra- tion. The following opinions of people directly involved in these problems speak clearly and forcefully on these problems. TRACEY HURWITZ On His Own Deafness: When 1 went to public high school, 1 was the only deaf student of three thousand students and I did well in my courses, but on the social side, I was a loner. I felt like I was in a fishbowl and 1 could watch all the action going on but I was not a part of it. I was an ob- server but, it worked out fine for me because I had deaf parents to go home to. So it was more like a retreat for me on a daily basis. But, I am worried about other deaf children who don't have anyone in their family or en- vironment to help them understand their social needs. 33