An Opinion
Progress, Faith, and Future
by pat miller
Still trailing after my own
beginnings, close on the heels of a
conversation about UNCC: the
nature of this institution. It is a
very young establishment, and
youngest when one comes to the
realization that it's all future and
no past. The past is the story of a
one-woman miracle now sacrificed
to growth., to ever re-producing
plans for the future. Yes, listening
to talk about the future of UNCC
IS a little like having bees live in
your head.
Still again this year there are
more students than ever, a greater
number of people with lives
involved here. Stumps are being
pulled out and over for a science
building: progress. A hole in a
cafeteria wall is becoming a site
for entertainment: beginning of a
residential community? And a
basketball team finally responding
to the dollar-massage will bring
God-knows-what-here: publicity,
a Name, more students....two or
three years of more basketball will
bring more building plans.
But what is there now? What is
there besides projections and the
feeling that UNCC is not real yet?
Architecture. A trusted source in
Architecture practically defies the
department, praising its novel
ways. People do hang around the
studios late at night, a lot of
interest there, and every once in a
while some curious on-campus
manifestations: geodesic domes,
cardbpard shelters. Fascinating
reading material seems in evidence
there. Indeed there are rumors of
flexibiltiy in Architecture. Is there
any structure to the rumors?
A confidant from Religion
assures me that this department is
realty where it is. Some professors
inhabit the area with an evident
willingness to examine themselves
and their methods, and an equal
desire to approach the things new
that might work. Manifestations?
Don't know - have you seen any?
I've heard of some interesting
conflicts in religion classrooms:
open-eyed exploratory professor
meets glassy-eyed
christian-fundamentalist student.
What a strange revolution this is.
when the student covers his ears
and says "Stop! Stop! I'm not
here to learn anything new or
different!"
The BCA is a leap of faith, and
It would be a good question to ask
it what it's doing here. Many free
universities across the nation
operate with essentially the same
philosophy, but with an added
struggle for survival. At UNCC the
struggle is all paid for. If Religion
is inching toward the future, the
BCA is already there, and who can
deal with that? This leads to
suspicion everywhere, and
difficult times generally. Unless
the BCA program is taken over
somehow from the inside out, it
could all go down the progressive
drain.
There's a lot of talk out of
HDL, and a fair measure of
rhetoric too. Students zero in on
the 201 course because it is
reputedly crip, and all you have to
know is about human potential
and self-discovery. And all that's
explained in those sweet books
passed on by HDL, that tell one
how to charge forth and smash
open education against the
guard-dog mentality of the
Charlotte-Mecklenburg schools.
Of course they don't tell you that.
It would be better if they did. It
would be better if the maxims of
John Holt and A.S. Neill were not
taught as techniques to "use".
Too many stories are coming
back, of misguided UNCC initiates
withering in local classrooms. I
saw one whose final method
amounted to kicking over desks
and yelling a lot. All this because
he disbelieved the philosophy of
open education but tried to fulfill
it in the classroom because that
was what they taught at UNCC.
Perhaps it Is a sign, that HDL is
growing too, toward some
realization of the contradiction in
the term "teacher education".
Perhaps after that change the
department will find something to
do that makes sense.
What about everybody never
heard about? What with all the
business majors inundating this
campus, why are they all
uniformly inanimate? Who getj
excited about their Engiisi
professor? Who is enthralled ir
the halls of Political Science!
Who's so obscure that tfiei
name's not even recalled?
There's something distaste^
about writing this. Somehow 1]
seems that It's not quits'
acceptable to discuss UNCC ass
place to be. It's like Eckerds
drugstore: everybody's gotta k
somewhere. A bumpersticker says
"I'D RATHER BE IN HELl
THAN CHAPEL HILL", on a ca
in the UNCC parking lot,
indicating that one person ha
already made the choice. Wh,
can't the existence and future oi
UNCC be discussed, as if it wers
something Interesting? Surely it's
not because it's somethitic
notorious. Maybe it's becausi
everyone is here by second choice
and everyone is bored.. Are we all
bored by UNCC?
Are we all infinitely bored b)
the notion of a future for this
place, and what that would evei
get us?
UMVERSITY PROGRAM BOARD
presents
Herbie Hancock
Cold Blood
September 27, 1974
at the
Charlotte Coliseum
tickets $5 in odvonce $3 in advonce
limit 2 $6 «t the door ^,,11,^ $4 at the door