Ezra Stiles College

Ezra Stiles College
Residential college
Shield of Ezra Stiles College
University	Yale University
Location	19 Tower Parkway
Coordinates
Nickname	Stilesians
Established	1961
Named for	Ezra Stiles
Colors	Black, Gold
Sister college	Currier House, Harvard Queens' College, Cambridge
Master	Stephen Pitti
Dean	Camille Lizarribar
Undergraduates	478 (2013-2014)
Mascot	A. Bartlett Giamatti Memorial Moose
Website	ezrastiles.yalecollege.yale.edu

Ezra Stiles College is a residential college at Yale University, built in 1961 by Eero Saarinen. It is generally called "Stiles," despite an early-1990s crusade by then-master Traugott Lawler to preserve the use of the full name in everyday speech. Architecturally, it is known for its lack of right angles. It sits next to Morse College.

Origin

In his report on the 1955-56 academic year, Yale President A. Whitney Griswold announced his intention to add at least one residential college to Yale's two-decade-old system. "We have the colleges so full that community life, discipline, education, even sanitation are suffering," he said. Wild rumors flew about four or five new colleges, but nothing substantial was announced until spring 1959, when Eero Saarinen '34 was chosen as the architect, and the Old York Square behind the Graduate School as the site. The Old Dominion Foundation, established by Paul Mellon '29, provided money to build two "radically different" colleges to alleviate the strain on the existing colleges.

The cornerstone of the college was laid on Alumni Day 1961. Students took up residence in September 1962, and the college was dedicated on December 7. The purchase of the land, previously occupied by Hillhouse High School and Commercial High School, from the City of New Haven was made possible by a grant from John Hay Whitney '26.

Design

Courtyard of the college, with Payne Whitney Gymnasium in background

The college is built of rubble masonry with buildings and a tower in the style of pre-Gothic Tuscan towers such as still exist in the medieval Italian hill town of San Gimignano, and is regarded as one of the "ugly ducklings" of Yale. The college consists almost entirely of single rooms, and in a modern attempt to capture the spirit of Gothic architecture, Saarinen eliminated all right angles from the living areas.

Stiles' adjacent "twin" residential college Morse is architecturally similar, was built at the same time, has an adjoining dining room, and shares a common kitchen. Architecturally, Morse and Stiles differ from older colleges by having more private space per student and the lowest ratio of natural light aperture to wall surface.

Because none of the interior walls make right angles, Stiles' dorm rooms are furnished with built-in desks and bookshelves. The college was once heated by a system that warmed the stone floors, but maintenance troubles led Yale to abandon it and install radiators.

Contrary to popular belief, the college's concrete walls were never meant to be covered with ivy.

Yale is renovating its residential colleges; in fall 2010, the refurbishment of adjoining Morse College gave Stiles students access to a new gym, dance studio, and the Underground Crescent Theater. Work on Stiles itself began in summer 2010, and is to be complete by August 2011. Among other things, it will add suites to the college and refurbish several massive lighting fixtures designed by UCLA sculptor Oliver Andrews and meant to be abstract and contemporary versions of "the sort of thing you'd find in an ancient castle".

Student life

Stiles has had success in Yale's intramural sports program, winning the Tyng Cup — presented to the residential college with the best intramural sports performance — in 1964, 1988, 1990, 1991, 1992, 1994, 1995, 2003, 2004, and 2005. This 10-cup total places Stiles just one behind leaders Pierson College and Timothy Dwight College. More recently, the college has taken second place behind Silliman College, which won the Cup in 2006, 2007, and 2008.

Ezra Stiles and Morse co-host an annual Casino Night. A formal affair, the event features casino-style games and live music.

The mascot is the A. Bartlett Giamatti Memorial Moose. The stuffed moose head that graces the college dining hall was named in honor of former college Master Bart 'Shades' Giamatti, who in 1977 became Yale's youngest president, and in 1989 was named Commissioner of Baseball. Giamatti's son, actor Paul Giamatti, lived in the Master's House on the Ezra Stiles College grounds from birth through age five.

Residents of the tower had access through a window to the roof of the Yale Co-op, which would sometimes be covered with a sheet of ice, permitting brave students to ice skate on the open roof (without railings of course).

In recent years, Stilesians have adopted the new tradition of hosting an annual "Medieval (K)night." For one night in April, the dining hall is transformed into a medieval banquet hall, and students enjoy medieval fare and dramatic re-enactments of "Beowulf" and dragon battles before besieging and pillaging a rival college.

Masters and deans

Masters of Ezra Stiles College	Term
Richard B. Sewall	1961-?
A. Bartlett Giamatti	1970–1972
Hans Wilhelm Frei	1972–1980
Heinrich von Staden	1980–1986
Traugott Lawler	1986–1995
Paul Fry	1995–2002
Traugott Lawler	2002-2003 (Acting Master)
Stuart B. Schwartz	2003–2008
Stephen Pitti	2008–present

Deans of Ezra Stiles College	Term
John Wilkinson	1963–1964
Ernest Thompson	1964–1973
Herbert Atherton	1973–1982
Rita Brackman	1982–1991
Susan Rieger	1992–2002
Jennifer Wood	2002–2010
Camille Lizarribar	2010–Present

Notable alumni

• L. Paul Bremer III, director and proconsul of post-war Iraq Coalition Provisional Authority (ES '63)
• Dan Froomkin, political columnist and blogger, The Washington Post (ES '85)
• David Gergen, presidential advisor and political commentator (ES '63)
• Sara Gilbert, actress (ES '97)
• Linda Jewell, diplomat, U.S. Ambassador to Ecuador (ES '75)
• Mitch Kapor, founder, Lotus Development Corp. (ES '71)
• Robert G. Kaiser, associate editor, The Washington Post (ES '64)
• Lloyd Kaufman, director, producer, and owner of Troma Entertainment. (ES ~'70)
• Mark Linn-Baker, actor (ES '79)
• Edward Norton, actor (ES '91)
• Alexandra Robbins, journalist and author (ES '98)
• Sheldon Whitehouse, U.S. Senator from Rhode Island (ES '78)
• Bob Woodward, asst. managing editor and political reporter, The Washington Post (ES '65)
• Norwood S. Wilner, attorney and anti-tobacco crusader from Florida (ES '70)
• Alex Timbers, writer/director and founder of Les Freres Corbusier (ES '01)
• John Yarmuth, U.S. Congressman from Kentucky

External links

• Ezra Stiles College, Yale