A Deep Dive into the Possible Decline of Reed Student Participation

Nearly empty balls in the Student Union, not enough student projects & volunteers for Renn Fayre, and barely any Quest contributors (come on, guys), the list can go on and on for examples of ways the college is struggling in terms of a lack of student participation and engagement. But is this shift simply all in the imagination? Or is there more at play?

The Quest sat down with a few alumni and staff members in order to get to the bottom of what is going on, and based on interviews with each of them, there seem to be conflicting reports and observations as to whether there actually is a decline in student participation, and what the reasons for that may be.

The Quest first spoke with Gary Granger, Director of Community Safety since 2010, who seemed to have observed tangible changes at Reed since he started here over a decade ago.

In recalling such observable changes, Renn Fayre was something that stood out to Granger as having had a marked decline in student participation on all fronts. “This began 3-4 years before the pandemic. The most visible changes were a decline in student volunteerism for what were ‘essential’ features: Bagel [Patrol] and Boundary [Patrol].” Further, in coming up with reasons why this intense possible decline may have happened, he posited, “I think one could make the case that changing our [Community Safety’s] approach to AOD use on campus also had an impact on Renn Fayre over time.” In explaining this approach, he said, “When I arrived in 2010 the enforcement of the AOD policy was uneven and not focused. Part of my mandate was to change the approach, resulting in our ‘never do nothing’ approach where CSOs began to ALWAYS engage with people where there was a likely AOD policy violation.” He continued, saying, “This meant that at RF we had many interactions – mostly with non-students who flocked to the event from everywhere. Now, instead of a party where dozens or hundreds of attendees have no relationship to Reed and no concern for our community, we see very few off-campus folks who aren't alumni. And, at this point, alumni need to be 15 years out to have been at Reed before this approach.”

Following this questioning Granger as to why a decline in student participation may have occurred in the first place, he gave a compelling response. “The students who seek out and are admitted to Reed change over time. Although our diversification of the student body feels painfully slow, we are making progress in some ways and this changes the makeup of the class. Reed is more selective now. When I arrived our application pool was ≈3,000 for a year. We now have ≈10,000 applicants for the same number of spots…There are likely other factors, but simply put, the Reed student of today is likely a different human in many ways. I also don't think we can discount the impact of social media and how students interact with the world and one another. As virtual interactions proliferate that may diminish people's desire/ability to engage in-person?”

After my conversation with Granger, I then spoke to two different alumni who are now staff members, Dhyana Westfall ‘05, who is Reed’s current Community Safety Manager, and Tess Buchannan ‘21, who is the Assistant Director of Alumni Relations and Volunteer Engagement.

As for tangible changes they have observed since their time at Reed to now, Westfall recalls a lot less nudity and fewer creative projects throughout the year. She remembers Defenders of the Universe (DOTU), a group that Granger had also referenced in our conversation, which used to build structures around campus and was reportedly quite active. Further, according to Westfall, Reed Arts Week (RAW) saw many installations built in “Central Campus,” and “used to see enough installations…that it looked like a miniature Renn Fayre.” As for Buchannan, she remembers balls being “packed to the gills,” but says even when she attended Reed from 2017-2021 there was a tangible decline in student participation. She even gave the example of the time in 2019 when it did not look like anyone was going to run for Renn Fayre Czar at all.

Photo courtesy of Gary Granger

DOTU couch structures

In conversation about "Olde Reed" – a term that is repeatedly used between Reedies past and present, and seems to have been a sort of golden age at Reed, and its possible death – the general consensus is that Olde Reed is something intangible that never really happened. As Buchannan explained, “Olde Reed seems to be your entry year to Reed, minus a year, or Olde Reed = n-1, where n is the year you started.” This understanding might spoil any exciting illusions that current Reedies may have had about Olde Reed, but this was also a sentiment that Granger shared and therefore seems like a general understanding by individuals who have been around Reed longer than most current students have. 

In theorizing what might explain such an observable decline, a number of reasons were mentioned:

Westfall gave two possible reasons: “1) There's been a direct correlation between Reed becoming more selective (as more people learn about, and apply to Reed), and a decline in student participation. It is my belief that straight-A students prioritize passing their classes over extracurricular greatness. 2) The lengthening of adolescence/delay of adulthood. As people under the age of 18 have come to be regarded as children, rather than as young adults who will need to know certain skills to succeed in the world, fewer students come to Reed with knowledge of how to use power tools, drive a car, etc. You can't build a giant decorative robot if you can't drive to someplace to buy lumber and plywood, haul it back to campus, and use power tools to build it.” 

Buchannan also gave her own set of theories, saying, “I do worry that it is a symptom of a larger failing in civic-mindedness. Festivals, clubs, and other 'fun stuff' requires people to 'turn towards' and choose to contribute. They don't happen in a vacuum, or just because they always have. This is true at Reed and outside of Reed as well. I think the loss of so much institutional memory is huge in the recent decline - those who experienced Renn Fayre in 2019 have almost all graduated now; the freshmen are more segregated than ever, and many of the now upper-classmen did not get the chance to have upperclassmen show them the ropes.”

Parting words from both of these alums are important to remember as students going through such a tough institution as Reed prides itself to be. Westfall “I'd like to clarify that I think some of Reed's past ‘extracurricular greatness’ was achieved at the cost of students not graduating. Back in the early 2000s Reed just admitted as many students as it needed to, with no expectation that they'd all graduate. For the record, I think it's totally appropriate that current Reedies prioritize graduating over throwing a party.”

She continued, “I don't want to sound like I'm blaming current students for factors beyond their control, but I do want students to realize how much agency they have to change things for the better. I also don't think everything about Olde Reed was good. I think some traditions disappearing is probably for the best. We're harkening back to a past that wasn't sustainable, equitable or inclusive for many.”

Buchannan also encouraged students to have more fun, saying “I hope that students realize that the day-to-day grind of their time at Reed is not what sticks, 10, 20, or 30 years down the road. It's generally the things that break the monotony of daily life, the things that are weird or unique or 'out there' that alumni recall most vividly; both that they themselves did, or that they witnessed happening around them.”

She then continued, “I also don't think all of this change and decline can be placed entirely on the students: it is a different time than the 70s, 80s, or 90s. Activities do not need to be as social, in the face of social media and digital connections. Weird behaviors or fun are more likely to be videoed or photographed and end up online, where those involved might face consequences. People are far more litigious, and Reed has a need to protect itself. Policy and Liability has been big at Renn Fayre since the 90s or so, with the federal scrutiny brought on by the scrutiny of our drug policies, or with the blood and injuries incurred by CHVNK 666.”

My final interview consisted of a conversation with Janice Yang, Director for the Office of Student Engagement since 2020, who seemed to have quite an opposing view to that of Granger, Westfall, and Buchannan. Yang reported that general student engagement has actually increased in recent years; “In Fall 2020, we held a virtual Student Engagement Fair, and 40 clubs responded to our request to update their information and confirm their existence. In contrast, we currently have about 101 clubs and student groups that have registered with Student Engagement and/or Treasury in the 2023-24 academic year.”

Year

Club listings

2020

48

2022

77

2024

101

Chart showing club listings over the past few years

Again, as for student-organized events and club meetings, as compared with the three years before the pandemic (2017-2020), Yang reported that there have been “a comparable and even slightly higher numbers of student-organized events and club meetings. This is based on the number of events/meetings registered through the IRIS Student Events Form, as outlined in the table below.”

Student Event Registration Requests in IRIS

Academic Year

Number of IRIS Event Requests

2023-2024 (partial, as of 3/13/24)

253(As of 3/3/24, with 8 more weeks left for students to submit more events.)

2022-2023

293

2021-2022

332

2020-2021

21

2019-2020

253

2018-2019

275

2017-2018

240

*Yang notes that these numbers reflect the number of IRIS event registrations received and is not an absolutely accurate count of events happening on campus due to the variations in how students register events. Further, small edits were made to delete a few anomalies (e.g. entries for private room reservations; department submissions, etc. 

Yang then commented on Reed post-COVID-19, saying, “...In the past two years, and particularly this year, I have seen Reedies rapidly re-establish norms, research and revive traditions, and assume leadership to contribute to a more active campus climate. Students are increasingly using the various student spaces again, and the Student Union is consistently booked out for weekend balls, as well as for weekday club gatherings. The level of student engagement has been on a positive trajectory coming out of the pandemic, but there will always be room to increase engagement and participation.”

While based on these conflicting reports from various interviews, this article may not have really clarified the question of whether or not there is actually a decline in student participation at Reed, these varying perspectives can help current students get a sense of the general evolution of Reed over the years. The Quest hopes that by reading this piece, maybe someone will be inspired to restart an old club, reach out to an alum, build some structures around campus, or what have you. In such a small campus that relies on student involvement like Reed does, it is so important to get involved in your community. Plus, you might actually have some fun along the way!