There are few more disturbing phrases, even spoken in jest, than "he / she / people that dumb shouldn't be allowed to breed." But substitute "shouldn't be allowed to go to college" and I'm all ears. I know it sounds awfully elitist, but in many cases it's for the good of the college-bound subject, who runs the risk of death by swelled head. Take Noah Riner, a member of the Dartmouth Class of '06. He came to school by way of Kentucky (see Horatio Alger anecdote below), became student-body president, and got into a spot of trouble, but more or less held onto his dignity and the respect of his less excitable peers. Now he's thrown it all away with this embarrasing foray into the creepy world of the Ivy-obsessed.
A couple Dartmouth alums have put together a website to allow Ivy Leaguers to share their knowledge, humor, and hubris with inquisitive high schoolers, and I wanted to share it with you: codeivy.org As most of you know, I grew up in Kentucky and until my junior year of high school, had never heard of Dartmouth or most of the other Ivy League colleges. In fact I had to Google "ivy league" just to find out which schools were on the list. I did some reading about the schools, was lucky enough to visit a few, and eventually fell in love with Dartmouth. Hopefully this website will help get the word out about the opportunities, resources, and experiences of college in the Ivy League in a way that is fun and very personal. So go sign up, check it out, and maybe share something. Thanks, Noah
Do we need to add another tendril to the kudzu-like proliferation of test-prep books, overpaid tutors, how-to guides, black-market essay websites, and so on, already suffocating us with the message "Ivy or Bust"? Does making a joke of Ivy League "hubris"—not exactly the right word, where simple "vanity" would have sufficed—make it okay to indulge it? No, and especially not when this is your idea of "showing the ropes" to impressionable high school students:
How do I ask a question? Just register, plug it into the ask box, set your point amount, set the category and hit send.
What if my question has already been asked? Your question may already have been asked and beautifully answered. To find this out and avoid spinning your wheels, use our Search page.
What are points? Points are your intellectual capital. You need points to ask questions. Your questions can be worth from 10-50 points, based on the level of challenge and how quickly you want a response. When you select a best answer for your question, the points you put up for it go to someone else. When you run out of points, be patient. Three days after empty, you'll be replenished again. Or, you could be someone else's best answer. The more points you gain, the more brilliant the world knows you to be. Points are the power of your influence.
How do I earn points? If you're an Ivy League student, register with our site to begin responding to posted questions. You gain the point amount attached to the question.
Why would I want to earn points? Because you want to help people. Because if you're the top respondent, you get featured as our Ivy Expert for the month, and we post a picture and profile of you and people of the opposite sex will stare and swoon. Because you care about the glory of your college, and want it to be the League Leader. Because it's fun and easy to contribute.
Charles Murray, where art thou?
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