Yale Should Be Cornell Model

To the editors:

In "Advice for Cornell" (Editorial, Oct. 28), The Crimson Staff, reflecting on the state of Harvard's own house system, states that "Randomization...has eroded this individual character [of each of the Houses]." You advise the Cornell administration not to "expect the close-knit comunities of earlier this century to develop."

But perhaps Cornell is not trying to replicate Harvard's system with its endemic apathy and uniformity of houses. On the contrary, the ideal which they seek is alive and well elsewhere in the Ivy League: in the residential colleges of Yale.

While assignment to one of the 12 Colleges is entirely random, each retains a vibrant and unique character of its own. Timothy Dwight College revels in its strong intermural tradition with huge participation rates, and Silliman students take pride in the caliber of Tea guests their Master attracts. The Colleges truly are intimate communities within the large University. Perhaps by following Yale's example, Harvard can even revitalize its own flagging House system. MATTHEW G. ALEXANDER   New Haven, Conn., Oct. 29, 1998 The writer is a sophomore in Yale's Silliman College.