Despite the presence of a secret society, a tradition of wearing gowns at dinner, and a college chant that boasts “We are the salt of the earth” and “No new ideas shall ever come near to us,” Trinity College insists it has changed.
Episkopon, Trinity’s pseudo-secret society, remains a contentious issue for the college. Banned from holding events on college property in 1992, the group still holds meetings off-campus. The college severed connections with the group after protests that it had become increasingly homophobic, sexist, and racist. The society has a designated leader, the Scribe, who, according the group’s website, helps deliver messages of “gentle and corrective chastisement.”
“They would pick your worst feature and tell you you’re ugly. They would pick young men that they thought were possibly gay and call them fags, which if you are 17 or 18 years old and you are still in the closet […] is really painful,” Dana Fisher, Trinity’s former chaplain, told the Toronto Star.
“The bottom line, from my point of view, is that this is a group whose time has passed,” said Andy Orchard, Trinity’s provost. “I’ve spoken to the person I believe to be the oldest living [Scribe] and he resolutely refused to have anything to do with the current group.”
The group has seen a marked decline in attendance over the years. Orchard said around 35 members attended the last meeting, a significant number of whom were alumni.
“You can’t tell me that 35 people out of 1,700 represent a significant portion of the college,” said Orchard.
Trinity students have also voiced concerns over their college’s aloof image. When the Toronto Star published an article on Episkopon in May, characterizing the club as “a crass, northern version of Yale University’s mysterious Skull and Bones society” and suggesting that it alienates students, over 350 students joined the Facebook group called “Hey Toronto Star, my TRINITY is Open and Inclusive. Do your research.”
“It’s sort of a broader campaign. We’re trying to combat the negative perceptions that people have about Trinity,” said Gabe De Roche, a fourth-year Trinity student and creator of the Facebook group. He’s currently working on a website that will feature stories and news that highlight Trinity as a college that welcomes diversity in all its forms.
With approximately 37 per cent of students currently reporting that English is not their first language, Trinity says it is not the WASP-dominated institution that its detractors claim it to be.
The college appointed its first Community Outreach Don this year to encourage student involvement in the community. This year, Trinity was also the first post-secondary institution in Ontario to sign the President’s Climate Change Statement of Action, a pledge to reduce greenhouse emissions. Among other student groups, the college supports “Rainbow Trin,” an active gay and lesbian social support group.
“[Trinity] is a very distinctive place and I certainly don’t want to lose that distinctiveness,” said Orchard. “That’s one of the great things we have going for us, but at the same time there are some old attitudes and old values that we need to wean ourselves off without being too draconian about it.”
But some traditions, such as “The Humbling,” continue to taint the college’s lofty reputation. This student-run event involves Trinity students, decked out in gowns, walking to other colleges and apologizing to them for being superior. While the admin frowns on such behavior, it still persists in some capacity.
With 158 years of tradition and history shaping people’s perception, Trinity faces the challenge of moving forward instead of dwelling on the past.
“Perception lasts for a long time,” said Orchard.
