During the school year, Brown’s Main Green is the definitive social hub of campus. From about 8:30 in the morning to sunset, in fall leaves and spring flowers, the Main Green buzzes with students. While I have always loved the green, I did not fully cherish its joyful hum until this past summer, when I experienced it with a different energy: quiet.
While many students do stay on Brown’s campus during the warmer months, the general summer exodus represents a missed opportunity for Brown’s undergraduates. I encourage every Brunonian to spend a summer on College Hill to form a deeper connection between students, the school and the city.
I spent this past summer at Brown working as a tour guide and a research assistant in the Department of Earth, Environmental and Planetary Sciences. Without the pull of constant on-campus activities, I was able to more freely explore Providence as a resident rather than just a student. Through humid nights with friends, walks to the Hope Street Farmers Market and way too many ice cream outings, summer integration with Providence was natural. After a record-breaking winter, evening runs around Hope High School and seeing gardens in full bloom allowed me to see the full cycle of seasons in Providence. Some pleasures of the summer are also inaccessible during the busy school season, like taking the ferry to Newport and sitting outside during the evening. Providence is by no means as bustling as New York City or Boston, but the smaller nature of the city made existing as a young person feel uniquely accessible.
Just like there is no single way to use the open curriculum, there is no one way to spend a summer in Providence. Like me, many students stayed on campus and participated in University sponsored Undergraduate Teaching Awards, known as UTRAS, and others worked independently for professors and received hourly payment. Brown’s iProv Fellowship provides funding through the Swearer Center and allows students to work with local nonprofits. Through the SPRINT summer fellowship program, students can design their own summer internship in Providence and receive a University stipend. Plus, if you want to see your family, travel or do a remote internship, there is still plenty of time within our almost four-month-long summer.
For an example from another college, Dartmouth’s mandatory “sophomore summer” term has fostered decades of class bonding in the woods of New Hampshire. During the summer after sophomore year, rising juniors grow academically by taking classes and working in labs, but overall, Dartmouth students describe sophomore summers as akin to “summer camp.” Dartmouthians reflect on Hanover summers as a time when they developed a “profound sense of belonging” with their class and woodland campus.
Of course, creating a summer culture on campus goes both ways. While Brown does give students ample options for research and community engagement, other summer offerings from the school are lackluster. Although Brown’s website states that both in-person and online courses are available, scrolling Courses@Brown reveals that the vast majority of summer courses are taught completely online, giving students no reason to stay on campus. Funding more summer courses in person taught by Brown faculty members could attract more students to stay for a summer. Further, while Brown does offer housing over the summer for current students, the dates don’t cover the entire summer and the daily cost is $45, not including a meal plan: a steep price for dorms.
Learning in a less intense academic season surrounded by students who also made the choice to be on campus this summer has been a highlight of my time here at Brown. When students attend Brown for four years but only live in Providence for the fall and spring semesters, Providence becomes a backdrop for our education — not the true home that it ought to be.
