News
The Clarion
February 28, 2005
Page 3
History shows liberals, conservatives can work together
By John Padgett spring semester.
Assistant Professor of English award-winning historian
The present-day battle between
liberals and conservatives may now
seem a permanent part of the American
political landscape, but that wasn’t al
ways the case, according to historian
Dan T. Carter.
“You can hear those battles any
time on those talking-heads cable news
channels,” Carter said. “But I’m not
here to reflght that fight.”
Instead, in a lecture titled “Where
Do We Go From Here: Private Hopes
and Public Dreams in a Divided
America,” Carter spoke about several
“historical moments that transcend
those battles”—such as the Great De
pression of the 1930s and the passage
of the Civil Rights Act of 1964—mo
ments when conservatives and liberals
joined forces for the common good. The
lecture, delivered Feb. 21 at the Porter
Center, was Brevard College’s first
Leam IN Community (LINC) program
of the South and former president of
the Southern Historical Association,
acknowledged that in many ways, he
is conservative. “However, 1 don’t
shrink from the label ‘liberal,’ despite
what the word has come to mean to
day,” he said. In the 19"' century, lib
eral movements helped to end slavery,
secure greater rights for women and
emancipated slaves, establish public
education, and encourage more toler
ant treatment toward immigrants.
In the 20“' century, liberals contin
ued to shed light on a number of social
ills and helped bring about reform in
such areas as child labor, civil liberties,
environmental degradation, and the
Social Security retirement safety-net for
the elderly, a program. Carter said, that
he “would defend until the last dog
dies.”
The bulk of his lecture focused on
moments in American history in which
liberals required the help of conserva
tives to achieve their goals, and what
lessons we might leam from those col-
laborations.
“Can history really tell us any
thing?” Carter asked. As a historian.
Carter admitted that he was often un
comfortable with George Santayana’s
often-cited statement that “Those who
do not learn history are condemned to
repeat it.”
“The lessons of history are often
not easily transferable to the present
day,” Carter said. He recalled that when
he was growing up during the civil rights
era, segregationists often cited the fall
of Rome as analogous to what would
happen here if civil rights laws were
passed.
Nevertheless, there are some les
sons we can learn by better understand
ing our past. Carter said. “Even though
history may not repeat itself,” Carter
said, “1 do think Mark Twain was on to
something when he said it does ‘rhyme
see History, page 15
BC on-site admissions makes Raleigh news
By Adam Beeson
Managing Editor
Brevard College made headlines
recently by becoming one of a few
North Carolina colleges to allow “on
site’ admission.
The News and Observer, a news
paper out of Raleigh, released an ar
ticle on January 24 about Brevard join-
mg this small group of colleges and
universities that will tell students if
they have been accepted on the spot.
We have begun working this last
year to reclaim our place in the eyes of
North Carolina high schools,” Joretta
Jlson, Vice President for Enrollment
Management said. “This sort of press
''ery helpful in keeping our name
our energy in the forefront.”
Admissions officers can now set
up private interviews for qualified stu
dents who have filled outs applications
ahead of time and sent them to the ad
missions office along with transcripts,
SAT scores, and letters of recommen
dation. According to admissions offic
ers, students tend to like “on site’ ad
mission because they know immediately
whether they qualify for enrollment in
stead of having to wait anxiously for
months.
“Our first actual event will be March
8 at Cary High School in Raleigh,”
Nelson said. “Our plan is to interview
and admit at least eight students that
morning-all of who have shown inter
est in Brevard and appear to be a great
fit for the college.”
The private interviews help to cre
ate relationships that are virtually im
possible to replicate by mail, according to
admissions officers. Private colleges, like
Brevard, also use the interview to set up
financial aid packages.
Nelson said some students are scared
of Brevard’s $21,000 annual cost.
“But when we show them that our fi
nancial aid package can cut that cost in half,
they start listening. We can even put to
gether a package right there if we need to.
The project has turned the heads of
high school guidance counselors as well
cis students and helped to re-establish rela
tionships with high schools according to
Nelson.
“We are receiving wonderful feedback
from high schools about the idea.”