1961

Under the leadership of actor David Birney, as its new project the class of 1961 is establishing a performing arts endowment for Dartmouth that will be known as "The American Tradition of Performance."

Since December Birney has been engaged in a "silent campaign" with a small group of classmates to establish a 1961 legacy to Dartmouth. Class president Oscar Arslanian reports the group already has raised more than $100,000.

"This is something that will benefit the students and the entire region by presenting events each year at Hopkins Center central to the American tradition of performance, " Oscar said. "These are performances by noted artists that would not be possible without our endowment funds."

The class campaign officially began at the San Francisco reunion in May. "Our immediate goal is $250,000, and with PetePalin leading our bequests, I am certain that this goal will increase in the coming years," Oscar said. Birney's carefully crafted prospectus begins, "The members of the class of 1961, in appreciation for the unique and valuable contribution the College has made to our lives, wish to express our gratitude by creating a continuing gift, one dedicated to the future of Dartmouth. We wish to provide an ongoing legacy...both to honor the importance of live performance in the arts in America and to sustain the long tradition of the American performance in the arts—its theater, its music, its dance—within the Dartmouth community."

At least annually, the endowment would make provision for a major performance. It could be from theater, music, or dance, from the formal to the controversial, from the traditional to the modern cutting-edge. "Through the endowment we also intend to promote important and substantial contact between artists and the Dartmouth student community," Birney's prospectus says. "We would strongly recommend, as part of the performance commitment, that each artist would meet with students in outreach activities—seminars, workshops, master classes, or perhaps simply substantive question-and-answer sessions." When the idea was proposed to the class executive committee last year, it was enthusiastically endorsed.

As Birney says, "What we seek to do here is to contribute to the very breath of the College, its spiritual substance, to celebrate and to nourish the very soul of the arts of America through live performance within the ongoing community that is Dartmouth."

The endowment campaign has been endorsed by President Wright and the College, but is not intended to take the place of the Dartmouth Alumni Fund. However, we do need to pay attention to the Fund, too. Head agent Pete Bleyler reported in late March, "The class of '61 is 'behind budget' at this stage. This means that total pledges and cash in at this point are behind last year and behind our goal for the 1998-99 fiscal year. However, there's some good news: Two of our class- mates have contributed $15,000, meaning that they're sponsoring a specific student currently on campus."

Latest word from class vice president Duane Cox, "We are exploring our options of self-employment close to home in Hollywood in some form of ministry. Also exploring the idea of teaching. We have been involved in the helping profession for so long now that it seems logical to continue in that vein. I have had much support from classmates and it is truly appreciated."

Wake Forest University Baptist Medical Center, Winston-Salem, NC 27157-1015; or