The Scarlet a Black, Dec. 1, leis—page 5,

 

Meats issue binds students and alums

To the editor: I have just seen the
pertinent clippings from your
November 10 issue concerning the
razing of Mears Cottage. Please let
an old 1929rer offer thanks and
congratulations for your support of
what amounts to an emotional
heritage for us all. I am both
touched and cheered by the
alliance between our generations!

Will you please thank Professor
Jordan, too. and the student who
spoke his mind about the careless

use of Mears parlor. I wish that
more alumni had the opportunity
to keep up with the college through
the Scarlet & Black. I imagine
that many alums will feel as We do.
I have already sent a letter to the
alumni office.

Thank you for doing for us what
the college and the alumni office
have thus far tailed to do. Sin-
C ely, Katherine Simons. Class of
I‘ J and Iormer SKA} stalier.

Smoke gets in your eyes

To the editor: There is an issue
that infuriates some, amuses
others and frustrates the rest:
smoking.

As things presently stand, a
smoker is free to light up without
first asking if anyone objects.
Personally, I find it difficult to ask
a smoker to stop smoking and I
don‘t understand why it is my
obligation to ask in the first place,

SGA has recently proposed a
new smoking policy that
acknowledges the non-smokers
rights: “No smoking during lec-
tures, movies in South Lounge and
Grinnell House presentations . .
But then smoking Isn't allowed in
ARI-I and as soon as the lights are
off, some Smokers “forget.“
Cowles and Quad have a smoking
and a nonsmoking section. but

again some smokers “forget.“

The last time a smoker refused
to stop smoking upon my request, I
said. “I’m really hurt that you
could be so uncaring of another
person.” His response was, “Stop
being so hurt. so Sweet,” Where
are the limits?

Cigarette smoke has been proven
to be detrimental to the smoker
and the non-smoker as well. I do
admit that it is difficult for me to
understand the necessity of that
cigarette. but I do know that no one
has a right to jeopardize my
health If the new smoking
proposal is passed, please
remember that when you “forget"
you are Iorgetting that Grinnell
College is everyone's home, not
just yours. Cary Raso'i.

NOWobjects to recent harassment

To the editor: At the November
meeting of the Grinnell chapter of
the National Organization for
Women a discussion of sexual
harassment led several college
women to cite recent examples of
this from their own cxpericnce.‘
They reported that workmen on
crews involved in College dor-
mitory renovation and other
college projects have made
sexually suggestive and
derogatory remarks to Women who
must walk past work sites.

These college women lstudents.
staff and lacultyi have tried to
ignore the men who have been
harassing them, They have tried to
laugh it off or to forget It; some
have not even Considered com~
pluining to supervisors who might
be able to restrain their male
employees

Curriculum politics

To the editor: There are a couplc
of aspects of the possible revisions
about which I am curious.

First, how does the business
office feel about the requirements
proposal in light or projected
decreases in enrollment? To a
small, private, expensive liberal
arts college the business oilice is
one of the most important elemens
of survival, along with admissions

Eyes Examined
Phone 236-7502

JENSEN
OPTOMETRIS'I'S

VISA, Mastercharge
935 Broad
Across from Post Office
Closed Thursday pm.
and Sat. p.m.

But these women are angry a
the men who assault their dignity
as they walk from dorms to
classes. or from offices to cars.
NOW wants the college community
to know about the anger of these
women.

We ask these men to respect the
dignity of these women, and we ask
college women to respect them
selves and to report such
harassment to work supervisors or
to police. if the occasion warrants
(such as the recent flashers). Some
harassment can be prosecuted; in
other cases a reprimand from a
boss would help,

A walk on the campus or across
Sixth Avenue to the business
district should not be a demeaning
experience. Griniieil (‘hnptch
National Organization for Vt'olncli.;is
TJ. Wisslnillcr. coordinator.

open space

Angered by faculty politics

by Alan Iieichtling

_ I would like to take this up
portunity to respond to the Sep»
tember 15 size article which

iscusscd the circumstances
urrounding my departure from
the faculty of Grinnell College.

The nature of those cirr

umstances requires that I answer
number of distorted statements
made about me by Kenneth

_ oldsmith, and to offer personal

hobservations as to the reasons for
my departure.

TIIIS HAVING BEEN said, let

me first of all state that respon-
ibility for these remarks is mine
lone. The Stu; has graciously
llowed me the public forum to
make these remarks.

The statements Ms. Weiner uses
in the article do much more than
provide opinions as to the reasons

giror my departure from Grinnell

“They provide clues to the “n,

ﬁnderstanding of the real nature of
ggthe evaluative process at Grinr

§§nellione which I contend is based

.upon subterfuge and politics. not

> clear reasoning or methodology

isgwhich guarantees the rights of due
process to faculty members.

:7 WALDO WALKER 5 comments
clearly demonstrate how ef»
wfortlessly the administration shifts

is its pOSItion in order to appear as

gthough a number of different
parties in a given dispute have

wWW-W

considered : another viewpoint

and development. Business office
desires are manifest in almost
every policy made, most notably
this year, In their protection of the
school's endowment by means of
the alcohol policy and their unique
approach to combating a deticit
budget by over-enrolling the fresh-
man class,

It would appear that a school
worried about declining
enrollment would attempt to find
out what attracts students. one
reason mentioned by many
students for coming to Grinnell Is
the ﬂexibility in the education that
a student can receive, I would
think the school would capitalize on
this characteristic rather than
change to resemble the other
schools in the area

My other concern is that all the

proposals that 1 have heard
maintain that \I'ellrroundedness is
entirely cerebral, Not one proposal
brought forth at Curriculum
Council meetings makes

 

THE HEADQUARTERS

 

HAIRSTYLING F0“ MEN dz WOMEN

804 - 4th Avenue
Grinnell, Iowa

Appts. Only
236-7005

been appeased, when in reality all
have been deceived.

Kenneth Goldsmith's statements
are simple distortions which I can
and will prove wrong. The fact that
the administration, Executive
Council and Appeal Board chose to
accept Statements of questionable
validity as truthful and accurate
evaluations, rather than to deplore

’ and prohibit such practices in

dicates to me the operating criteria

’ in all personnel decisions.

IT IS MY considered opinion that
surface unity is more important
than substantive quality. It is my
belief that personal disputes are
considered more important than
objective evaluations based upon
first hand observation.

I believe that the overriding
concern is for cosmetic ap
pearance in order to create the
impression that because
everything on the surface is
smooth, it follows that the quality
of education is similarly on a high
plane unfettered by any conflict
which might mar that impression.
It should be obvious that I find this
assumption absurdibut I do
believe, based upon my own ex-
perience, this to be the case.

LET ME FIRST comment on
Kenneth Goldsmith's remarks.
This untenurable member of the
faculty has become a tacit
spokesman for the music depart

“Once and for all, let the Grinnell

community know how personnel

decisions are made. ”

ment—and his words seem to carry
more weight than that of any other
member of the department, in
cluding the chairman, James
Fudge, whose own recom»
mendations were positive, yet who
remains unaccountably silent in all

._ this Goldsmith says that “elec-
‘tronic music is a luxury at a small
a liberal arts school

a Statement

provisions for helping me cope whichlfind odious and personally
with my leisure time. 'lhc PE. «objectionable,

department could bc expanded to
include not only activities such as
but bridge or

tennis and gait,
development of avocational
terests

The only rationale I can see ioi
this omission is the theory
presented by some that
requirements are politically

the

so

The lirst implication in that

éremark Is that electronic music is

E

in».
s . .
8music which we study in our

not important when placed next to
the traditional European concert

culture Such a statement is

girresponsible in that it betrays

ignorance of the developments in
that same tradition past the year

motivated. Since the phySICaljill‘MS when technology made many

education staff has no political.
power, it \5 easy to see why they
woul 1d not be able to provide for job?
security through required courfses
as others are able.

These are two of my concerns
that I have not heard whel
discussing the pioposals with
others. 'lherc arc celtainly many

i

écolleague

recent changes in music possible

.. That Goldsmith has no sympathy

with the music of his own time is a
matter of personal choice—but
ehardly a criterion to condemn a

THE b ()\D implication is
that it i too expensive to have at
Grinnell If there were no elecr

other points which more directlysitronic music studio at Gl',lnnell

ask about the elements of a

perhaps the statement might be

Gl‘lllnell education. I hope othClswdcfensible But, intl'uth. there was

\\‘Ill present their posxtions for or__

against the proposed
requirements Scott Porter.

db

On Tap
lowenbnlu Dali
JD’S RESTAURANT

Upstairs Downtown

one already here, one which the

L‘administration of the school ac-

ivcly and generou

ewmmﬂmisbw

during my three years as its
director. in tact no money was
spent during the 1917-8 school year
{or repairs Don Starnes, my
technician, will certainly verify
this.

To say that I was “not interested
in teaching the nittygritty of
theory” is also irresponsible and
inaccurate. The electronic music
courses were at the core of com-
position study at Grinnell, with
traditional media composition
being offered as adjuncts to the
theory courses or as independen
or directed study.

His statement that I was
“wonderful for about five people'
is clearly slanderous. The in
creasing enrollments in in
classes. private students and wha
not clearly demonstrates the lac
of objectivity with which Gold
smith has proceeded to malign m
characteriand I so accuse him

To say that my evaluations wer
“not the world's greates
evaluations" indicates. in m
judgment, an extreme bias, on
which will not admit anything less .
than perfection. The implication i
that he alone is the Single authorit
in questions of quality, content an
acceptability, Since Gold mit
never once directly sat III
classes or discussed any aspect o
my courses or my methods w

me. I cannot understand how he

mmwimseammm

can make any comments about
what I did, or how I did it. or how I
thought about what I did
(“philosophy") which are-
anything less than fictional!

The answer to the question mustﬁ
be found elsewhere. Mr Goldsmithﬁ
must have known that he could get
away with making such outrageous g
statements; otherwise there woul

remarks. _
THE PROOF FOR this can b ‘
found in Waldo Walker's remarks.
His public remarks seem to con-
tradict themselves at every turn.
First he says that “the college
can t make its decisions as a resultﬁ
of personality conilicts " then heg
says pertormance is best judge g
by the students, " then he says into
effect that student evaluations
carry more weight than colleagual
evaluations. The Executive
Council. oI which he is a member.
says that the estimation of my
teaching is “based primarily on
the evaluations made by youl
colleagues of my teaching Next,
Walker says that “both elements
have to he wctghcd. colleagual§
evaluation has a signillcalll roleLil
ALLTIIIS ADDS up to lloihingii-
because one tends to cancel the
other out Walker is Spcﬁslllg from _
bothstdcs 0| his mouth int the same

iglime He tells students that they

Term papers typed

d have an important role to plzlyi

uliile telling the facult) the same

Ething The Executive Council goes

at a reasonable
rate.

Call 236-3974

for more information.

if

oi o\\n hay and changes its
criteria to suit the situation. The ‘
rplooi of this Is to be found in its

letter to me: ”His acceptable and

has long been standard practice at

the college. to evaluate a,

colleague's eaching by means

other than V ting that colleague 5

classes.”

(continued on page

 

