As compiled by Barbara Ofosu-Somuah (NYMP11)

Let’s talk about what the cold wind will blow into Middlebury College next year – the first Chicago Posse to join the Middlebury community! When I first heard the news, naturally I had mixed feelings. As a first year Posse scholar who just dove into the Middlebury community as well as the Middlebury Posse family, I felt like a small fish in a big pond. I still don’t know the ins and outs of the campus and the people. I want to get to know the scholars outside my Posse on a deeper level than just small conversations and I hope that as the year goes by, we will all form familial bonds. I am hesitant about how the dynamic will shift among the New York City scholars when the [first cohort of] Chicago scholars arrive next year. I am not sure exactly how [the dynamics] will shift but it will most likely interfere with the New York City “culture” that have unified us all. I am also hesitant about Posse expanding to Chicago because I feel that MPNY14 will not receive the same attention and excitement that my Posse did when we first arrived on campus (because they will be split between the NYC and the Chicago Posse, focusing less on MP14). However, the more diversity on campus, the more enriched [the Middlebury community will be] so while I remain hesitant, I am also very excited to meet the first Middlebury Posse from Chicago. I have never been to Chicago so having them on campus will provide me with a different city culture and perspective. To MPC1!
Suraj Patel (NYMP13)