Nowhere does history repeat itself so rapidly as here. And yet, somehow, real change does take place -- the face of the University is an ever-evolving landscape in spite of the ubiquitous vestiges of tradition. How then does the recurring stream of student activism translate to progress?
Like the architects of the ancient pyramids, who would not live to see the completion of the structures they began, Dean of Students Penny Rue said large change often spans time longer than the tenure of any one student.
"Important changes take more than one academic cycle," Rue said.
There will, however, always be a necessary element of recurrence in student initiatives, Rue said.
"If you get tired of reinventing the wheel, you shouldn't be in higher education," she said, quoting former Georgetown University President Timothy Healy.
Starting over each year is not necessarily so problematic, Asst. Dean of Students Pablo Davis said.
"It's always good toa remind ourselves that a quarter of the undergraduates are new to the University," Davis said. What may seem like old news to third and fourth years, he said, is "fresh to a lot of people on the other end."
Rising fourth-year College student Priya Parker, the founder of Sustained Dialogue, described the fast-moving progression of faces at the University as a "curse and a blessing."
While some initiatives may suffer from a lack of continuity over the years, Parker said this also offers an opportunity for more rapid reform.
"You can change an atmosphere in four years," she said.
For Parker, the most important goal is to compile a "historical and collective memory" of a school's past.
"If you have no idea what your school's history is," she said, "you're bound to repeat it."
Dean of African-American Affairs M. Rick Turner also emphasized the importance of history, specifically citing the 1987 report from the task force on Afro-American Affairs, "Audacious Faith," as a past study which the present can learn from.
"If we pay attention to that report
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