Modeling the World - con't.

In 1989 the Academy sponsored a panel discussion on "Sexuality, Homosexuality and Homophobia." This public discussion by Exeter alumni/ae of their experience as gay students at Exeter triggered a number of institutional responses, including the formation of the Gay/Straight Alliance in 1992. Since 1992 that group has organized a great number of educational gatherings to discuss and promote understanding of the role of sexual orientation in the life of the Academy.

As you all know, last May the Board of Trustees voted unanimously to allow same-sex committed couples to reside together in Academy housing beginning in the coming academic year. This decision extends the tradition of inclusiveness that stretches back 220 years to the spirit that founded this institution.

This change in policy will be difficult for some to accept. Some of the religious beliefs held by students in this room find same-sex relationships problematic. But we should not be surprised by this, nor should we be alarmed. Whenever humanity encounters beliefs and patterns of behavior that are different, there are rough spots. Whenever the Academy has made a step toward greater inclusiveness, witness the story of Principal Soule and the students from Kentucky, there are rough spots.

Diversity at a Glance A stroll along the paths when classes are changing or a visit to a dinning hall during the dinner hour would confirm just how diverse the Exeter campus is today. Numbers also tell the tale. Here are some statistics from the admissions office concerning the 2000-2001 student body.    This year, students from 43 states and 27 foreign countries are enrolled.    For the first time since the Academy went coeducational in 1970, there is a 50/50 balance of male and female students on campus.    Thirty-four percent of the Academy's students are students of color, the highest numbers in the Academy's history. Eighty-six African-American students are currently enrolled, up from 54 in 1995.

A Diversity of Powerful Minds

In the end we must ask why diversity matters in an educational institution. A decade ago at the Alumni Council Weekend, Principal Kendra O'Donnell said it as well as it could be said:

We wish to become and we are becoming a more diverse community because we want to remain true to our mission. Our fundamental calling as a school is to educate young people who will be effective citizens in their future communities. . . . No matter what their scope, the communities in which we expect our Exonians to be effective citizens are likely to be multiracial, multicultural communities. . . . John Phillips argues that we must educate youth who will change the downward slide of civilization. . . . Perhaps it is not too grand an aspiration to believe that we are educating the youth who will be the peacemakers for society in the future. In order to educate the peacemakers, we need to create for them and with them a harmonious environment that contains all the elements of diversity.

All of you who sit in this Assembly today will in time inherit a world shrunk by communications technology and rendered compact by modern transportation. The stage you will occupy as you play your parts in life will be a world stage. In addition to the academic lessons in which we will engage this year we must all recognize that there are larger life lessons to be learned from this school. Here is a diversity of powerful minds brought together in a rich environment for learning. Here is the opportunity to practice those skills that will enable us to help this small, fragile planet become a better place for all of us to live. That is a lesson that I urge you to engage enthusiastically as we begin the 220th year of this school.

From a talk delivered by Principal Tyler C. Tingley '48, '64 (Hon.), P'99 on Sept. 14, 2000, at the opening assembly of Phillips Exeter Academy.

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