Class Association Delegates Meet to Discuss Coeducation
When the class officers held their annual meetings in Hanover on April 30 and May 1, one of the joint actions, following a lengthy discussion of the coeducation issue, was agreement to send delegates from each association to Hanover for a two-day meeting with Trustees, faculty members, and administrative officers who had served on the committees studying the subject.
Nineteen alumni representatives gathered in Hanover on June 18-19 to ask questions, engage in a frank exchange of views, and examine in detail the "why" of coeducation and the "how" of putting it into effect, should the Trustees take affirmative action on the proposal by the Trustee Study Committee that Dartmouth establish an Associated School for Women.
The Trustees who met with the alumni representatives were Charles J. Zimmerman '23, chairman of the Board; Dudley W. Orr '29, co-chairman of the-Trustee Study Committee; F. William Andres '29, and Dr. Ralph W. Hunter '31. President Kemeny attended a session and five members of the faculty took part. Provost Leonard M. Rieser '44 and Vice Presidents John F. Meek '33 and George H. Colton '35 (moderator) were participants, along with John H. Marshall '71, undergraduate member of the Alumni Council, and administrative officers who were present to deal with questions of the academic calendar, finances, enrollment, housing, and athletics.
In his remarks to the delegates, Mr. Zimmerman said, "I want to emphasize that the responsibility for making the decision about coeducation rests with the Board of Trustees and that the Board alone can make it." Some criticism of the proposed associated school, especially on the part of the faculty, comes from misunderstanding of what the school is supposed to be, he stated. Educationally the difference between the associated school and fully integrated coeducation would be minimal, he said. The school does not constitute a "separate but equal" device, but rather would be Dartmouth's own imaginative plan, with the advantages of giving women a clear and distinctive voice in the College community, providing greater opportunities for financial support, measuring up to all legal and equal opportunity requirements, and offering much greater flexibility than any other coeducation plan. He noted that the Trustees at their June meeting had approved a conference with representatives of the faculty to discuss educational and other aspects of the associated school plan and had also authorized a further study of the Princeton and Yale experiences. Mr. Zimmerman concluded by saying, "The Board's greatest desire is to make its decision a wise one, in the best interests of Dartmouth College. I know it will be a courageous decision. I know it will not be a vote taken under pressure."
At the conclusion of three long sessions with College officers, the alumni delegates to the conference had a final meeting by themselves. Out of that meeting came the following unanimous resolution:
"WHEREAS, the Board of Trustees is exercising due diligence in its study of the problems of coeducation, including careful consideration of the experience of other institutions,
Therefore be it resolved that this Committee unanimously supports the vote taken by the Board of Trustees at its April meeting.
This Committee urges the Board of Trustees to take conclusive action at its October meeting; that action may be to go forward with some form of coeducation, not to go forward with coeducation, or to delay action for a specified period of time.
This Committee pledges its support and calls on all members of the Dartmouth Family to support the Board of Trustees in whatever decision may be made."
The alumni representing the various associations at the conference were:
Class Presidents—Louis V. Gerstner Jr. '63 and Bertram R. MacMannis '39; Class Secretaries - Richard K. Montgomery '35 and David A. Schaefer '63; Class Treasurers - John T. Schiffman '62 and Williard C. Wolff '31; Head Class Agents - Edwin C. Chinlund '29 and John F. Reno '61; Class Gifts Chairmen - Richard W. Bandfield '49 and Stanley H. Feldberg '46; Class Newsletter Editors - Dick Dorrance '36 and Eugene H. Kohn '60; Bequest Chairmen - Paul L. Guibord '36 and Herbert A. Wolff '10; Club Officers - Paul H. Mannes '55, Peter C. Schwartz '60 and Lyon M. Greenberg '54; and representing the Dartmouth Alumni Council, Dero A. Saunders '35 and Richard W. Lippman '42.
