Professor debuts classism debate in lecture

Sociology professor, Maynard Seider, has been interested in the class system within American education for about 10 years. Friday he presented one of the Brown Bag Series Lectures on the topic: "American Dream or Business as Usual? The Role of Higher Education in the U.S. Class System." It featured the research of Seider in addition to interviews with students from both the College and Amherst college. Seider argued that, from a young age, students are trained to be members of the class they grow up in. "It's not that easy for people to move up," Seider said. A student educated in a poor public school with little funding and few opportunities for advancement won't have the same opportunities as the wealthy student in private institutions. Around the time of the College's orientation, students take a survey about their career ambitions. It was when reviewing these that Seider first became interested in the post-college goals of students and the class system. He found that most College males dreamed of being police officers, and most females wanted to work at entry-level positions. "I wondered why those were their aspirations, why they didn't widen the possibilities," said Seider. Included in the lecture were interviews with 45 white college students. Fifteen were from the College and the other 30 were from Amherst college. They were split into three groups: one was of a wealthy background, one was poor, and one was of the working class. Other than the fact that both campuses were small, virtually everything else was different. All students were interviewed during their freshman and sophomore years. Some of Seider's findings were that, during their first year, the poor or working classes at Amherst college felt excluded from the upper class, whereas class status at the College was much more downplayed. Students at Amherst college where also far less concerned with what they were going to major in during their first year, since they had the time and financial means to explore the possibilities. The biggest changes seemed to appear during student's senior years. Although Seider only went back to interview half of the original students, the differences were obvious. Most students from the College seemed politically progressive, while many from Amherst college were conservative. A major concern for the College's students was more money for higher education, while the Amherst students were more politically active. Another notable difference is that several Amherst college students planned on pursuing law or medical school, while College students were geared toward the teaching field or social work. The Brown Bag Lecture series continues throughout the year and is open to all students, staff, and faculty. "I have enjoyed the faculty research, this is a relaxing atmosphere and we have an opportunity to share," said Monica Joslin, dean of academic affairs at the end of the lecture. The next lecture is on Nov. 16 and will be given by Matt Silliman and David Johnson of the philosophy department.