We’re curious about what Beloit College faculty, staff, students and alumni think about the Mindset list.
We’ve run into a few of their opinions online.
In the comments section of today’s Inside Higher Ed story, Beloit student Abby R. offers this defense of this list:
As a current Beloit student going into Public Relations after graduation, I see this list every year and I’m happy because for once people know what Beloit is. Maybe it doesn’t really represent the interests and views of Beloit students, but it’s really a hit with a lot parents that might tell their kids to look more into the school as a future college option. A lot of Beloiters don’t really like the list or it’s funny, but like the bell run (look it up or ask a Beloiter), it’s a strong tradition and it’s probably here to stay.
That’s as honest a defense of the list that I can imagine: It has nothing to do with Beloit college students. They don’t like it or think it’s funny, but it has the word “Beloit” in the title.
It’s the old “I don’t care what you say about me, just spell my name right” approach, attributed to P.T. Barnum, an appropriate patron saint for the Mindset List.
A couple people with Beloit connections commented on Linda Holmes NPR blog post “Do College Students Really Think Beethoven Is a Dog?”
An alumna (Kate Morgan) says she is pained to hear her alma mater bashed based on its connection with the list:
In reading down some of the responses in the comments section (always a slippery slope), it was a hard pill to swallow. The most challenging being some of the glib accusations being tossed around concerning how this reflects on the college. Beloit it a tiny campus, there were something like 1,200 students when I was an incoming freshman. You know everybody really well after four years. Doubly so for profs. So hearing people slam on McBride for being out of touch is weirdly personal. It is such a head trip for me to see people picking this apart. I’m certainly no official voice for the college, but despite what you think of the list, Beloit in all its parts amount to more than this.
Beloit “faculty wife” Melinda Newton suggests that Beloit professors wouldn’t approve of students submitting something of Mindset List-level quality, but they like getting to contribute items to the list:
I live in Beloit and my husband teaches at the College. The makers of the list poll the professors every year for items to add to the list. My husband was proud that he added an item (a couple of years ago) that Snuffleupagus was always visible to this generation. He still talks about it now. This is why the same references end up on the list year after year. In my opinion, the list writers could use a tough editor before putting out a press release. Also, those same professors wouldn’t let students write papers making huge generalizations about a group of diverse people. But I’m just a faculty wife. What do I know?
If you’re connected to Beloit College and want to share your view on the Mindset List, comment on this post or send me an email at:
disgruntled.prof@beloitmindlessness.com