The Baking of "Granola Privilege": Outdoors Orientation at Middlebury College

This senior project focuses on “granola” identity as a case study of privilege that is prevalent among students of elite liberal arts institutions. The theoretical framework for analysis is the role of institutions in... [ view full abstract ]

This senior project focuses on “granola” identity as a case study of privilege that is prevalent among students of elite liberal arts institutions. The theoretical framework for analysis is the role of institutions in Bourdieu’s theory of “cultural reproduction” and Goffman’s definition of “total institutions”. My research examines the institutional logic behind mandatory first-year orientation trips and how they shape students’ views of the ideal College experience. By studying the role of the institution in the perpetuation of “granola privilege” on campus, I aim to shed some light on these research questions: 1) Which values of today’s American elite are being reproduced through “granola” identity on college campuses? 2) How is the experience of participating in a wilderness orientation trip different than other types of trips in terms of activities, leaders and group dynamics? 3) What kind of effect do wilderness trips have specifically on first-years and their impression of the dominant campus culture? To answer these questions, I interviewed 15 first-years from the same dormitory hall on their orientation trips and the social benefits of being “outdoorsy” or “granola” on this campus.