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Friday, January 28, 1983
BENNETT COLLEGE, GREENSBORO, N. 0.
VoL XLIV, No. 5
PROCTOR APPEARANCE: Dr. Samuel D. Proctor gave a stirring speech
at the David D. Jones Service of Remembrance before an outstanding turn-out.
The guest is flanked by Rev. Addo and senior Valerie Pruitt.
Dr. Isaac H. Miller, Jr., and Jackie Johnson, SGA vice-president,
complete the notables. (photo by Theresa Roy)
Belle sells school
by Monica Ellers
“Bennett College” was at
the top of Staci Rowland’s
Christmas list, and when she
returned from the holidays,
the sophomore English major
brought the institution $250
in application fees and 25
potential Belles.
Rowland is one of about 20
student volunteers in recruit
ing who are helping to imple
ment a system emphasized by
Director of Admissions Phyl
lis Johnson since her arrival
on campus almost four years
ago.
Calling Rowland’s success
“fantastic,” Johnson stresses
the valuable contributions of
all her volunteers: “We ap
preciate their efforts. We
can’t do without them. We
need them. All 20 are very
vital to our program.”
Staci, with the energetic
assistance of her mother,
hosted a wine-and-cheese re
ception for 30 high school
students in Harrisburg, Pa.
The event was handled in
a first-class and “out front”
manner from the beginning.
Drawing on Mrs. Jeanette R.
Rowland’s expertise as a pub
lic relations worker for the
United Way, the invitations
mentioned the $10 fee for
guests choosing to apply.
Staci, who has an adven
turous spirit, “figured the
worst I could possibly do was
that no one would fill out
the applications. I knew that
the school needed money.”
The fact that 25 out of 30
guests responded attests to
the success of Staci’s presen
tation. After a social hour,
she spoke candidly about the
college and then answered
questions.
She believes that her hon
esty impressed the audience.
Her talk centered on three
qualities which she feels make
the college appealing.
“If you come for the educa
tion,” she told the women,
“it’s conducive to getting
your work done. You’re not
distracted by guys running
around. It’s a congenial
atmosphere.”
She stressed that “the fac
ulty in my major are pretty
competent” and that Greens
boro was a good place to be.
“It’s small enough to be coun
try but big enough to be city.
It has a little something of
everything,” she stated, as
well as proximity to major
metropolitan areas like
Washington and Atlanta.
Unwilling to “snow” her
guests, Rowland cited her dis
likes — the need for better
food, modernizing of the li
brary, and more enlightened
rules governing students’ so
cial life. “I would hate for
those girls to come and find
out that I had deceived them
and say, ‘Well, the girl told us
things were the other way
and she’s a liar.’ ”
Following her talk, Staci
distributed applications and
said: “Would you please fill
these out for me? And they
did.”
Martin Luther King is remembered
As guiding light in hlacic quest
by Deborah Lewis
Dr. Martin Luther King
Jr. has not as yet been hon
ored with a national holiday,
but his significance as a cour
ageous leader is revered on
this campus, according to a
Banner poll.
Nedra McGee, a junior psy
chology major from Chatta
nooga, Tenn., says, “Dr. Mar
tin Luther King Jr. fought
for the freedom of black
Americans oppressed by the
reins of segregation. His
struggle proved significant to
all Americans denied of their
unalienable rights. Dr. King
believed in his dream for
freedom and led the battle
non-violently.”
Some students felt strongly
that King’s devotion to non
violence was instrumental in
gaining civil rights for
blacks.
(See Page 3)
Faith needs revival
by Deborah Lewis
Christians are evading the
morality of their religion,
warned Dr. Samuel D. Proc
tor at a convocation address
January 16.
Proctor was the guest
speaker at the David D. Jones
Service of Remembrance.
Proctor expressed the idea
that “we are not being au
thentic in our titleship of
Christianitv; therefore, we’ve
lost our moral thought . . . ,
and that’s whv we cannot
make up our minds about the
dream of Dr. Martin Luther
Kin^r.”
His messaee “The Bottom
Line” maintained that salva
tion isn’t based on how pres
tigious you become in your
life, but the way you have
treated your brother while
you were here.
“Inasmuch as you do unto
the least of my brethren ye
have done unto me,” says
Proctor.
One example Proctor gave
of Christian immorality was
his attack on the Goldsboro
Christian School.
He says, “They have the
audacity to use the word
Christian in their title, and
then they find themselves
emerged in the national press
because of their practice of
barring young black students
from attendance.”
Proctor explained that the
people who call themselves
the moral majority are con
tradictions of their titles.
“We have some of the
meanest and anti-Christian
people in America running
around calling themselves the
moral majority,” claimed
Proctor.
The people of America will
be lost in a world “where the
rich will become blind to the
need of the poor,” says Proc
tor, if so-called Christians
continue to stray away from
the church.
Presently, Proctor is the
Professor of Education at
Rutgers University and the
senior minister at the Abys
sinian Baptist Church of New
York.
He served as president of
North Carolina A&T State
University for four years.
Proctor is the author of the
book, The Young Negro in
America.
Dancers are tap city
by Dee Evans
Reaganomics has apparent
ly hit yet another program—
the Bennett College Dance
Company.
The group, under the direc
tion of Ms. Susan King, has
no budget to work with this
year. This is the second year
in a row that the dance group
was not alloted money from
the school.
During the 80-81 year, the
company worked with a stable
budget. The money left over
from that year was used for
the budget the following year
along with money from fund
raisers. This year, however,
only 83(* was left in the ac
count and no more has been
added.
A request of $150 has been
made to Dr. Phyllis Forte
Ethridge, dean of student ser
vices, and Dr. Dawn Chaney,
chairman of the physical edu
cation department. “Things
look bleak at this time be
cause everyone seems to be
tap-dancing around so we
haven’t got any money,” said
Ms. King.
Mrs. Edna Stanback, direc
tor of co-curricular activities,
is also working diligently to
obtain some money from the
student activities budget.
“As far as the money sit
uation is concerned, the fu
ture cannot be foretold ; how
ever, no matter what happens,
we can do a lot more for the
service of the college. Money,
of course, is still the big
issue,” stated Ms. King.
Because of the money sit
uation, the dance company
has had to perform old dance
numbers. The group is look
ing forward to choreogra
phing new dance pieces, but it
would cost a great deal for
new costumes, music, tape
and a light technician.
Cheryl Williams, president
of the company, feels that
costumes do a lot for a dance.
“When a dance is made up,
we need new costumes. With
no money, we can’t afford
new ones; therefore, no cos
tumes affect our perform
ance,” she said.
Since the dance company
does not want to perform old
numbers on campus, it is
forced to perform in the com
munity. According to Ms.
King, “It’s not imperative to
perform for Bennett students
when we can take what we
have and go out in the com
munity and recruit.” Ms.
King still strongly empha
sizes that even off-campus
productions take money.
The company has thus far
performed in Chapel Hill at
the invitationals. Smith High
School and Winston-Salem
State University.
The group also hopes to
travel extensively within the
state and possibly outside of
North Carolina for recruit
ment purposes. The itinerary
would include Greenville,
Gastonia, Hickory, Shelby
and Florence, S. C.
The members of the com
pany are: Williams, a junior
from Brunswick, Ga.; seniors
Kathy Lewis, troupe vice-
president from Chicago, and
Donna Jessup of Greensboro;
sophomore Wendy Bonds,
Georgetown, S. C.; and fresh
men Kelly Davies, the compa
ny sweetheart from Spring
field, Mass., Donna Athias
from Silver Springs, Md., and
Allyson Berry of Leesburg,
Florida.
COMPANY IN SEARCH OF CAPITAL: The Dance Company has grand plans, but it needs a modest budget
in order to make ends meet. Ms. Susan King, troupe adviser, is hoping for a change in fortune.
(photo from Publicity Office)