Students Voice Concerns At University-Wide Meeting

At a University-wide meeting on the Dunster House murder-suicide last Thursday students questioned the effectiveness of Harvard's house advising system and its counseling and support resources.

Many faulted the administration for not doing more to prevent incidents like last week's murder-suicide from occurring.

The hour-long information session was attended by approximately 450 students, tutors and others who packed Science Center B to listen to presentations from administrators, the Harvard Vietnamese association (HVA) and the Harvard African Students Association (HASA).

Dean of Students Archie C. Epps III fielded inquiries during a question-and-answer session following presentations on the lives of Dunster House juniors Trang Phuong Ho and Sinedu Tadesse, who both died last Sunday.

"We have a lot of re-examining to do here," Epps said in response to a female senior's statement that international students may be reluctant to seek out counseling in a foreign country. "We have a lot of resources but still we hear stories" of failure, he said.

Several students targeted the general advising system at Harvard, saying it is set up so that students with problems must seek out support, which they say troubled students are unlikely to do.

One female student asked whether "it would be better if the University could have tutors or advisers approach students on a regular basis" and inquire about what is going on in the student's life.

Some students were also critical of Epps' reponses to complaints about advising.

"I don't think he addressed adequately the point that the services are out there, but it requires the students to take a very active part in seeking them out," Marco B. Simons '97, a Dunster House resident said. "Many students...may not want to seek help."

The Stress of Harvard?

Media reports of the murder-suicide have been several angles. Some have focused on the stress of the Harvard environment, while others have emphasized reported tensions between the two roommates.

Although he offered no explanation for last Sunday's tragedy, Epps tended to focus on the stress at Harvard.

"We are a very busy college," Epps continued. "When the president took his leave he apparently got 1,500 letters saying, 'Well, I'm exhausted too."'

"We have to slow down," Epps continued. "Faculty and staff have to pay attention to undergraduates and being part of the College. Sometimes we lose sight of that. It's real problem."

Thursday's meeting was sponsored by the HVA. Ho served as vice president of the HVA from April 1994 to April 1995.

HVA member Diep N. Nguyen '95 said the University's system for informing students about emergencies like last Sunday's is deficient.

"The University never held a general meeting to inform students on Sunday when the incident occurred," Nguyen said, to sustained applause.

"It's a point well-taken," Epps said.

Responding to a male Divinity School student's concerns about counseling for students who had already left campus before the Sunday tragedy, Epps agreed that the College would schedule memorial services in September.

Epps also said it would be necessary to take some steps to assure parents of incoming first-years that their children will be safe on Harvard's campus. We've had a number of telephone calls from anxious parents," he said.

Anh Ryan of the Asian American Civil Association in Boston criticized the College's housing decisions.

"They come here; they get culture shock; they have to adjust to language barriers," Ryan said. "Why is the administration trying to place two student from two totally different cultures in a room together?"

Ho immigrated to the U.S. from Vietnam in 1985; Tadesse grew up and went to high school in Ethiopia.

"We try to place students based on their interests not on their culture or race," Epps said.

Assistant to the Master of Dunster House Carol A. Finn responded to criticisms of the administrators for placing the two women together as roommates.

Finn said she did not remember placing the two women together but said she would have been likely to match them because of their similarities. Both were pre-meds and biology concentrators. "The fact that they chose to room together the second year, I would have considered that to be a successful placement," Finn said.

One male undergraduate said he was concerned by the high number of suicides: Tadesse's death was the third suicide of an undergraduate this year.

In response to queries about the three suicides, Epps noted that Harvard's mental health case load has increased in recent years because of advances in medicines to treat mental illness.

"We have many more in the College [now] who are living with illness," Epps said. "Having more people in care carries a risk."

"I have yet to come to suicide which does not have a very, very long history...going back well before college," he added.

"The number of [criteria] we use in assessing students' health has got to be turned up," Epps said. "We've got to be more attentive. We have to surround students with safeguards. This amount of suicides is unusual for Harvard."

'Enthusiasm and Energy'

Earlier in the meeting, six HVA members recalled positive memories of Ho, who they described as industrious and unfailingly kind.

"Trang was an exceptionally hard working student; she engaged her assignments and duties with enthusiasm and energy," said Quoc Anh Tuan Doan '97.

"Trang showed great compassion for others, a motivating factor in her decision to pursue medicine after college," Michael K. Tran '96 said. "While she was here at Harvard with us, she was very supportive of her friends."

The HVA members also said Trang was sociable and upbeat.

"Trang is remembered as an out-going and fun-loving person by her friends," Hans L. Stohrer '95 said. "She was lively, seemed always to wear a smile, and had cheery and friendly words for all whom she met."

'Another Picture'

Three members of HASA, which Tadesse joined her first year, recalled a young woman very different than the one portrayed by the press.

"What I am here to do is not to explain...but only to reflect what I know of Sinedu Tadesse," said Inati R. Ntashanga '95. "Sinedu was a very responsible student. She was always there on time; she was usually the last person to leave."

"It's a shock and a surprise that this happened," said Humphrey Wattenga '96, a native of Kenya who met Tadesse during first-year orientation week. "Sinedu was usually soft-spoken. She was reserved in a way, but someone I considered a good friend. We are all saddened by this affair and [by] the loss of both students."

"She was easy to talk to and very encouraging," Wattenga said.

Adey A. Fisseha '95, former president of HASA, said: "The one word that has been repeated again and again throughout this time is that she was very, very nice. She was very understanding, the type of person you can complain to about anything."

"She was the only student you could always count on," Fisseha added. "It's easy to pass judgment...but I just want to show another picture of her."

Following the meeting, some students expressed dissastisfaction with the meeting' content.

"I've been thinking about 45 stab wounds," said a Currier House sophomore who declined to give her name. "You're telling me this girl is a nice person? She is not nice."

At the meeting, the HVA announced the establishment of a fund to assist Ho's family, for whom she was a primary wage earner. Contributions should be sent to: Bay Bank, P.O. Box 50001, Woburn, Mass. 01815.