College admission camp opens at Dartmouth

(U-WIRE) HANOVER, N.H. – High school students will come to Dartmouth College this summer to seek a leg up in the increasingly competitive college admissions process.

The 11-day program, called College Admissions Advantage, carries a price tag of $2,695.

Spots in the camp are first-come, first-serve, and will be capped at 35 rising high school juniors and seniors. The camp offers SAT preparation, essay-writing classes, and workshops and seminars on aspects of the college admissions process.

The program is not associated with the college, and its arrival comes to the chagrin of the admissions office.

“I don’t know much about it, but I don’t particularly look favorably on these programs in general because they provide services to a population that is already advantaged by the (admissions) process,” Dean of Admissions Karl Furstenberg said. “It goes against what we’re really trying to do, which is level the playing field.”

Marcia Evans, College Admissions Advantage executive director, presented the program as an opportunity for those who are not as fortunate.

“We offer an educational program to explain to many students who can’t go to a private educational consultant,” Evans said. “Our goal is the demystification of the admissions process, so we provide experts to help explain the process.”

The camp’s students will be housed in Dartmouth dormitories, an arrangement made by the college’s conferences and events office.

“It’s a program we wish didn’t exist,” Furstenberg said. “All sorts of groups use Dartmouth facilities, and I’m sure this group is reputable, but I’d just prefer they weren’t using the campus and starting that association.”

Southern Illinois U. bans Pikes following drowning

(U-WIRE) Carbondale, Ill. – Pi Kappa Alpha’s 14-year tenure at Southern Illinois University is over.

The fraternity, also known as the Pikes, was found guilty on all eight charges stemming from the April 4 drowning of Pike freshman pledge Brent Johnson, and permanently banned from the university.

Among the more serious rules the Pikes were found to have violated were ones concerning making alcohol available to minors and the prohibition of alcohol at an activity associated with the fraternity.

It is the first time a fraternity has been banned from the university.

–compiled by Ryan Holeywell