Newspapers / The Guilfordian (Greensboro, N.C.) / April 11, 1978, edition 1 / Page 2
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page two Letters to Dear Editor, At WQFS several individuals conceived of and attempted to complete a project of immodest proportions - The Jazz Mara thon. Within a ten day, two hundred hour time limit we intended to cover, as compre hensively and coherently as possible, an approximately eighty-year heritage charac terized by constant change. We intended to establish the relationship of Jazz to other musics and art forms as well as accentuating the historical, philosophical and sociological implications intrinsic to this unique music. We were happy with the degree of failure achieved and our next venture of this sort will hopefully attempt even greater failure. My participation in this project inspired several thoughts concerning the necessity of failure and foolishness in a college experience. The function of the college experience is to concentrate and exhilarate learning and experiencing within a limited time span in order to facilitate not only excitement and celebration of that learning, but, also to plant the seed of understanding. This under standing ideally will burgeon, throughout a lifetime, into the spirit of creativity, participa tion and development. The texture of living should be dominated by that spirit, embracing all things affirmative of it while denying all that may engender destruction of it. If that creative attitude can be maintained with some consis tency then it will naturally be extended to other individ uals thereby effecting and shaping the community tb some extent. Clearly, creativity is not just applicable to the aesthetic or artistic endeavor, but to all aspects of living. Of those things most danger ous to the spirit of creativity - habit, repetition, inertia, fear of failure, dilletantism - habit and repetition are common to the field of radio. Surely no one would intimate that the role a non-commercial radio station is to fulfill is one typified by redundancy, by the reiteration of a particular type of music plagued by uniformity, insipidity and pecuniary design. Yet appar ently the majority of Guilford students find the repetitive to be entertaining, if not signifi cant. It is of little consequence whether or not that same group is capable of allowing themselves to make use of their capacities for imagination and curiosity. It is of greater the Editor consequence when one realizes that Guilford basically reflects the consciousness of educating America as well as any other arbitrarily choosen school might. It is alarming and dis concerting to receive virtually joyous reactions from the community external to campus concerning the Jazz- Poetry readings, the Mary Lou Williams workshop, or Pete Crawford's History of Percus sion show while campus reaction, if not indifferent, can be characterized by the several bitter, obscene phone calls demanding the return of Rock to the airwaves and mourning its ten-day absence (which is better than indifference I suppose). If these words seem contentious or overly serious, considering the subject matter, then you have read well. They are extremely serious, simply because these implacable demands and obtuse reactions are unfor tunately revealing of an attitude contary to learning to creatively and deliberately to invention. If that attitude does indeed pervade the minds of a majority of American students, then we should be troubled. Our successes, our insistance on success, is at the bottom Think Before You Drink The birds are chirping, the flowers are blooming, and the trees are budding. In other words, spring has sprung! And when spring comes. Ser endipity Weekend soon follows. It's a great time to relax and get away from the tedium of school before exams begin. It's a time for listening to music, partying, and drinking. But, for some people, it has its hazards. The people of whom I speak are the problem drinkers. Many people who are problem drinkers either do not, or will ' not, realize that they have a problem. In an interview with Betty Thompson of Greensboro C.A.R.E.S., I found out the major signs of a drinking problem. The most obvious sign is a memory blackout or temporary amnesia. This is not to be confused with passing out. If the person cannot remember what happened the night before, then this is the point at which he or she should reassess drinking. A second sign of problem drinking is denying that one might have a problem with alcohol. This includes all the little games people play to keep from being realistic about The Guilfordian of this immense problem. When is it going to become clear to all those involved in the intellectual maintenance of a college atmosphere that neither the bravado or exuber ance necessary to take on absurdly large projects nor the inevetable failures are to be mitigated or snickered at or degraded by should be praised, if not advised initially? The will to struggle and fail, due to the ignorance necessary to attempt the damn fool thing with, is part, a vital part, of the learning and growing experience. Explanation should not be required of those who fail, nor should sympathy be given to those fools that intend to try to get their small minds around a huge nation. Trying to enter the kingdom of fools is a quest, dangerous but necessary, to all those with pretensions toward a creative life. With pretensions toward fooldom. Ken Harris Dear Editor, We feel it most imperative to bring to the general college's attention a certain proposition currently in the academic committees. Several faculty and students have called for the implementation of a special "honors college" for the benefit of intellectually gifted students. This college body will be separate from the their drinking. Another sign is drinking alone excessively. People have always joked about this sign, but it is, in essence, true. Mrs. Thompson stressed two signs of problem drinking that are particularly relevant to college students. The first is declining grades and/or missed classes due to hang overs. The second is a shift of friendship from true friends to mere drinking pals. She emphasized that she wasn't trying to sound trite but that these were definite signs for college students. In all probability, the week end or special occasion drinker is just an occasional drinker. Thus, it usually is not a problem. The key to all dlrink ing, though, is how you use the alcohol. There is a great difference from drinking in a social situation and drinking to get blasted. Thus, on Seren dipity Weekend, have a good time but be careful. If you suspect that you have a drink ing problem, see a counselor in Student Services or call Greensboro C.A.R.E.S. They will be glad to help you with your problem before it gets too late. John P. Richardson normal college curriculum due to the prerequisite of a 3.5 grade point average of its members. Admission to, attendance in, and continuance of this program is planned to specifically addres itself to individuals who have esta blished a numerical superiority over the regular college student population. Present academic acknowledgement such as Dean's List honors and Dana Scholars' awards will continue. Separate hous ing accomodations are also planned. We recognize the needs of intelligent students. Accelerated courses or independent studies, accord ing to certain sources, fulfill this need only to a limited extent. We encourage their pursuit of higher goals. Yet we also perceive the possible divisions among students that could arise because of segregation and favored status conveyed upon. We question the conse quences of an elitest and sep arate "college" within the framework of Guilford College. Will the creation of an "honors college" segregate certain gifted students from the normal social atmosphere of Guilford College? Will the creation of an "honors college" eliminate the possibility for non-honors students to parti cipate in specific classes with the more demanding professors of Guilford College? Will the creation of an "honors college" destroy the very fabric of the Guilford College liberal arts education? We believe that an "honors college" will not only destroy the very fabric of the Guilford College experience but will add a new type of competi tion which Guilford has previously avoided. It is our belief that the present compe titive atmosphere here is directed at the individual; (Ml Joan Curoto, Editor [ Caroflna Cotaa, Assistant Bdhpr Randy Citot, Business Managar r Linda Ertai. Sports [ Water Sonnanfakft, Photography r Jody Mark off. Art r Lauren Saflar, Typing Tamara Frank, Ctub Contact contributors Beth Eakes, Amy Fribush, and Friends battara and oonartbuUona from faculty, and odwre •re yleama and may B A aant to: tha P.O. BOH I 17717, QuMofd Calm, Oreatwboto. N.C. 2M. Tha •dtaflal tfaff. Howavar, naareaa ifcht to on* Moua, [ pnfana, or gnaignad 111111. Harms may ba WMMMM [ from pubicallon upon reqwc. April 11,1978 every individual within the student body being in compe tition with themselves, compet ing alone against their own demands and desires. The creation of an "honors college" could very well negate compe tition with the self, and instead institute an uncalled for type of competition among students. We are not saying that out ward aggressive competition is wrong; we are saying that competition among students is not now a part of Guilford College and the brand of competition which Guilford promotes is unique in our highly competitive society. Guilford, as an institution, offers Quaker education in its essence: each individual learning and following his or her own spirit and light. We believe Quaker education is a positive force in our society and we do not believe that the very essence of this experience should be altered. As an alternative to the proposed "honors college" program we suggest that the entire intellectual atmosphere of Guilford College be improved by the upgrading of the overall system. All of Guilford College's students should be the recipients of intellectual improvements, not just an elitist few. The nature of a college is the imparting of knowledge and information. To emphasize grade superiority over the socialization of the individual (whjch is Guilford College's goal) is wrong. If you feel the creation of a separate "honors college" runs contrary to the experience you wish to extract from Guilford College, we ask that you please express your reservations to your advisor, the Academic Dean - Bruce Stewart, and the Guilfordian. Sincerely, Lawrence Rust Richard Ashley
The Guilfordian (Greensboro, N.C.)
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April 11, 1978, edition 1
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