THE GRINNELL SCARLET AND BLACK, MAY 28, 1974, PAGE 4 '

Haas: What’s‘ Been
Good For Grinnell -

by Dennis Haas

I am pleased to join your long line of
well-wishers to say: "Congratulations! My
best to you. You have been very good for
Grinneu." '.

I recall vividly the day you appeared
on campus as a freshperson/perdaughter.
The upperclass student word was ut to
you loud and clear: "Last Spring 1970)
in the wake of Cambodia. Jackson State.
and Kent State, Grinnell College was clo-
sed down. Classes ended abruptly, no com~
menoement ceremony, no Senior Partyl
Students disbursed to save the nation. Finel
However, that kind of thing must nothappen
again -- that is, closing down the school.
So cool it, be calm, study, don’t rock the
boat."

You heard the message and obeyed it
quite well for four years. It wasn’t easy,
- I know, with the continuation of the Viet-
nam war, Nixonian Democracy, Watergate,
impeachment, and more. Yes, some mal-
contents continued to voice their concerns,
but, all in all, you were good for Grinnell.
Furthermore, your obedience was tested
by persons trying to make waves inside
.the college community. Within, the great
issues were grading, student power, hlack/
white relations, independent Study, and dogs.
Once again cooler heads prevailed; wisely
you backed down, accepting the counsel
of your superiors in matters where clearly
the faculty knows best. Thanks to you,
significant strides have been made to roll
back some of the student gains initiated
in the years before your arrival on campus.

Personally, lshall miss the dogs, partic<
ularly their contributions scatteredover the
campus grounds. No longer will one have to
walk across campus with head down to watch
one’s step. Next year I envision people
walking around with heads raised, daring
to look into the eyes of other people with
heads raised, perhaps even venturing to
smile or to speak to the other. It's a rat-
her frightening prospect. The dogs will be
missed.

Unquesrionably, you r most me morable leg-
acy to Grimell College has been the inven-
Qonrof academic pressure. “Studieren uber

‘ alles" became your battle cry. Extend lib-
rary hours! Force faculty toincrease read-

Diced to Order

by Benjamin Chaim Braddock

Come, mince words with the robed,
Me, canorized like a robot

come down to earth _

fully educated by a pair of dice,
f‘a t chance for Contentmem

when ambition doesn’t match.

Sheepskin; estranged from the flock
wandering, well-bred on corn,
wondering, well-read--with notes
when touring my thoughts
Directionless; but bound by
momentum
Momentarlly musing
Perpetually responding to the dice.

    

  

THE GRINN'ELL SCARLET AND BLACK
COMMENCMENT EDITION

May 29, 1974
EDITOR. . . .
MANAGING ED
LAYOUT EDITOR. . . . .
ADVERTISING MANAGER.
CONTRIBUTORS (not
mentioned in byline)
....................DavidGaines,
Daniel Moss, Joe Simpson, andScottWeil

 

Jack Doppelt
. . .Kay Oss
.Louise Dix
. .John Lom

     
 

  
     
  
  
 

 

 

ing requirements and the number of papers
to be Writbnl Pass the word, “study is
back." Or rather“more talkingaboutthink-
ing about studying more"is back.Thenwor-
rying about more talking about thinking about
studying more built up pressure which in
turn created instant community. Grinnell-
ians finally have something in common ~
academic pressure.

Then came your masterstroke involve-
ment of the faculty by publishing your cv-
aluations of them in the Rapevine. See what
you’ve done. Now faculty are truly becom-
ing part of the community, experiencing
widespread anxiety brought on as a result
of being under the almost constant critical
scrutiny of students Grading instructors in
public] Beautifull Unselfishly, you have
made academic pressure a reality for us
all. Indeed, you have been very good for
Grinnell.

1 do wish you well as you venture forth
into the real world, wherever “it” may be
for you. And remember, if things out there
do not go too well. do not work out as you
planned (or did not plan), you can always
join that growing list of graduates who
got homesick before you and returned to
Grinnell. See you back here soon.

LOOKING BACK

 

'Grinne“ Experience’ Worthwhile

by Julie Drew

On several occasions during the past few
months I've found myself discussing Grin-
hell and the education I've gotten here with
friends who are also graduating. in these
conversations, l’ve usually been one of
Grinnell's staunchest defenders. Say what
I might (and do) about the stuffiness of
academics here, and the slow pace of this
country town, the fact is that my fouryears
at Grinnell have been rewarding ones.
I’ve looked at Grinnell less as a means
to an end and more as an interlude. a ch-
anw to indulge myself in intellectual pur-
suits which have relevance only to me.
A student’s life is a self-centered one; it
is financially non-productive, it is secure,
it is relatively irresponsible, and it is fun.
i can accept this fact, and I can justify
four years of this existence because if is
an interlude, and because I suspect that
the environment in which students live lends
them unique opportunities for personal gr-
owth. Academics are only a fraction of
what Grinnell is all about, and it seems
to me that the desire for scholastic suc-
cess often takes on unwarranted import-
ance.

1 think that much of my appreciation
of Grinnell is a function of my own cas»
ual approach to academic achievement.

'Split Personality,’ Apathy Hurt College

by Susan Monasch

The ‘State of the college’ has always been
a very popular topic and, as such, has been
commented upon by almost everyone at one
time or another. Perhaps it is late, but
upon leaving Grinnell it seems fitting that
I should finally express my opinion. i do
not propose to voice any new criticisms
or offer brilliant solutions, but as long as
the conditions exist and the trends continue
which lhave witnessed the conclusions which
I have drawn, though unoriginal, bear re-
peating.

The class of ’74, as incoming freshmen,
was met with a unique situation. The clos—
ing of the school the previous Spring and
the energy generated by the proceeding
events had uniﬁed the campus community.

THE GEINNELL SCARLET AND BLACK

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1 came here from a high school in which
college was considered only one ofa ser-
‘ies of options, and so I’ve never had the
pressure for scholastic success many of
my friends from professional, white-col-
lar neighborhoods have had to deal with.
l’ve had the luxury of being able to take
courses which interest me without the
worry of maintaining a high average that
i might follow a long line of friends
and relations to ivy-league graduate sc-
hools. For me, Grinnell has been an in-
teresting end in itself, not the 8-semes-
ter gauntlet to grad school some students
seem to make it.

I don‘t begrudge, at all, the time l’ve
spent at my books, because frequently
that time has given me genuine enjoy-
ment and satisfaction My major is in the
humanities, but I've taken course in all
three divisions I never would have consi-
dered if a good average had seemed the
primary justification for being a student.
Fortunately, it seemed as silly to me
four years ago as it does now to pass up
a chance to read Spanish literature or to
study invertebrate anatomy simply because
doing so might blow my GPA.

Grlnnell has also provided me with op-
portunities to get involved with non—aca-

That unity was Still evident in the Fall
when all of the upperclassmenwere working
to finish incompletes. At the same time,
the long campaign to do away with re-
quirements was finally won. As freshmen,
today’s seniors experienced what was pro-
bably the peak of student involvement with
and satisfaction in their education and the
world. Four years has seen the decline of
both.

It has been argued that what happened at
Grinnell was only a reflection of a general
apathy that occurred nationwide. l‘m sure
this played a part, especially in the classes
of incoming students since then, but it
cannot (or should not be allowed to) explain
the actual conservative trend which has
become visible in the administration of the
school. In 1970-71 the present credit re-
quirements for graduation were instituted
along with the pass/fail option for half of
the credits taken in any given semester.
Over the years SGA has fought for student
representation in those matters which re-
late directly to the quality of the education
available (for example, faculty hiring).
However, in the ‘same short period the
grading system has been revamped (elimi—
nating the pass/fail option), individual de»
partments have been restructured and have
increased the requimments for majors, in-
dependent and guided reading projects have
become harder to get, and now it is being
suggested that student evaluations of the
faculty be done away with.

It has become increasingly obvious that the
administration, the faculty, and the students
have divergent views as to the purpose of
Grinnell’s very existence. The administra—
tion (perhaps out of necessity) is obsessed
with keeping the school runningatall costs.
(I need only mention the ‘cost’ which many
departments have already felt in faculty

demic activities. Teachers’ aiding and vol~
unteering at the Town Help-Line are ex-
periences that have become intrinsic parts
of my life at Grirmell. Being a student ad-
viser has also been an experience 1 value.

We also been involved with the Poweshiek
County Association for Retarded Citizens,
and an ad-hoc citizens group in the county
as a result of an independent project 1
did last semester, which focused on the
decision-making process in local lowagov-
ernment. Grinnell might have limited cul-
tural offerings, but it’s a great place for
even a punk college kid to get involved
in local politics beyond the typing-and-
telephoning level.

[find it impossible to be as down on Grin-
nell as some of my friends who feel dis-
appointment, and evenbitterness about their
time here. Grinnell is not a vocationalsch-
001, and the skills one learns at aschool
like Grinnell resist easy classification.
Still, 1 am confident that for me. these
skills ero'st. i imagine my enthusiasm Wo-
uld be somewhat qualified if [were grad-
uating Without any plans for the fall, but
I hope that I would still recognize the
personal and intellectual growth I’ve ac-
hieved at Grinnell.

cutbacks.) That very same faculty, however,
also mlates to the college in economic
terms; it provides them with their jobs.
Last (and also least), the students whoenter
this institution are under the misconcep—
tion that its purpose is to educate them.
Not only are they so naive as to believe
this, but also, at the age of la (legalage
in most states), they have an idea that they
know what a ‘good education‘ entails.

Part of the mythology which surrounds
college is the notion that in the course
of these four years the adolescent child
magically matures into an adult member
of society. In high school there is no ques-
tion that the student is incapable of knowing
what is best for him/her, and the opposite
is true for the mature adult in the ‘real
world'. (It is of no consequence whether
these basic assumptions are valid or not;
they are generally accepted which makes
them for all intents and purposes, ‘true’.)
Where does this leave the college student”
15 he/she able to make his/her own dec ~
sions? Judging by the policies which have
been developing for the past four years
at Grinnell, the student is considered to
be still a child. Many seniors have become
painfully aware of this fact now, when upon
graduating they will be expected to be
‘adults’ for the first time in their lives.

The effect that Grinnell's 'Spllt person-
ality’ (with the divergent goals and atti-
tudes of the administration, the faculty, and
the students) has upon the quality of the
“Grinnell Experience" is devastating. The
adversary nature of the relationshipbetween
the segments of the college community can-
not help but obstruct the educational pro-
cess. As long as the students are patron»
ized, coddled, and/or dictated to theywlll
be unable to achieve individually their full
potential and, consequently, neither will the
college as a whole.

d

