A Haven With a Big Warning Label
Written: Jan 10 '04
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Product Rating:
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Pros: A world-class faculty who offer a near ideal education.
Cons: It don't got a whole lot else.
The Bottom Line: Simon's Rock is a big idea in a small place. Unfortunately, it might not be that great an idea.
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| sir_feep's Full Review: Simon's Rock College of Bard |
Just like the idea of communism, Simon’s Rock is a great concept— it just doesn’t entirely work.
Looking back, Simon’s Rock should have been a perfect school for me. I was frustrated with the academic and social confines of high school; I was looking for a new and mind-opening experience; I had striven for a chance to connect with peers who saw the world outside the typical teenage MTV-A&F-materialist paradigm. This is, in some ways, just what I got— and I should have been careful what I wished for.
Like the majority of other students who went there, I left high school after my sophomore year. As a result, the milestones of my teenage life, like getting my license, kissing a girl, or even turning 16, all came after going to college. My experience was by no means unique; Simon’s Rock students might wish they were older— many of them live in a state of delusional grandeur thinking that they are— but the truth remains that social maturity and intellectual maturity are two entirely separate things.
Of course, my time at Simon’s Rock wasn’t entirely bad. For starters, I made a handful of close friends who I connected with on a level I never could at high school. I took classes that stretched my mind rather than numbing it, as academics, I believe, are the school’s finest point. And I grew up faster and more independently than life at high school would ever have allowed me, and am grateful for the result. But such high points came at the cost of a socially alienating, geographically isolating, culinarilly nauseating, and personally draining one-and-a-half years.
Here are my impressions on specific areas of the school:
Social Life
Nonexistent. Social groups are staggeringly cliquey, and nearly set in stone once they form. Being a dry campus, parties are out of the question, and weekend activities rarely go beyond sitting in a friend’s room talking about other Rockers (the entire campus functions as an enormous gossip mill— with a total student population of 400, every detail of your life is literally known by *everyone*) or, on a nice night, running off to smoke pot in the woods. The range of official activities— if the term “range” can be used at all— usually amounts to one or two weekend appearances by third rate folk singers, which on average reach a max attendance of around 7.
The Campus
While some call it pretty, and others go so far as to use words as “scenic” and “pastoral,” my memories of the environs are mainly of scraggly trees, steep hills (the entire campus is on a 20% incline), and garish early-70s cement monstrosities that function as classrooms, library, dorms, and dining hall. They’ve made a few modern additions since then, with decidedly better results, but the majority of campus structures most closely resemble gray, industrial Pizza Huts. The campus is located in a sleepy town called Great Barrington, in the Berkshire Mountains. It’s about two miles from downtown, about two streets worth of overpriced restaurants, a movie theatre, and a new age crystal shop.
Academics
As I said before, this is where Simon’s Rock shines. I’ve talked to some of the most jaded ex-students, and even they admit that the classes are where it’s at. The faculty consists of some of the most creative, intelligent, and devoted individuals I’ve ever met. They offer tremendous insight in a highly intimate setting, and truly make you feel that they’re there for you. Even after transferring to one of the top academic schools in the country (I’m currently writing this review at the University of Chicago), I still consider the faculty at Simon’s Rock to be the best I’ve ever seen.
Food
Like most college campuses, the food ranges somewhere between regurgitated filth and overcooked rat excrement. To the incoming student, it will seem “okay” for about three days to a week, until it suddenly becomes clear that “food” and “dining hall” don’t always have to be associated with each other. The dining hall, architecturally speaking, isn’t so bad a place— it’s a large, open room inspired by old Quaker meeting houses, where everyone, including the staff and faculty, share their meals together.
All in all, I’m grateful that a place such as Simon’s Rock existed for someone like me, but for so many people, it could be so much more. It still is a haven of sorts for students fed up with the high school culture, but while I wouldn’t outright discourage anyone from applying, I would definitely suggest looking at all available options before making a choice. Simon’s Rock has its perks, as any school does, but they come at the risk of alienation, depression, and a steady supply of nervous breakdowns.
Recommended:
No
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Epinions.com ID:
sir_feep
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Reviews written: 10
Trusted by: 0 members
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