Newspapers / Daily Tar Heel (Chapel … / Sept. 18, 1959, edition 1 / Page 2
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J I I ! PACE TWO THE DAILY TAR HEEL FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 13, 195? Unl AT Command Post Peter B. Young Lssk (Th following tditorial was written by Curtit B. Cars, 195? sradutU of tho Univtrtity f North Carotin and last ytar'a Editor of Th Daily Tar Hl. Tho present Editor fetls this to bo an out standing fiamplo of student expression and cer tainly worthy of re-printing. It first appeared In the 19S8 Orientation Issue.) The year starts and it is a new experience for many. For many, billed by their high school presi dents or school superintendants in a somewhat less than eloquent commencement speech as America's future leaders or citizens of tomorrow, the change will be quite drastic. For most the change is pre dictable. There will be first the interminable orientation with meetings, meetings, and more meetings, some of which some of the new class will skip. They will hear many words about the Carolina tradition of freedom, about the Honor System, and about stu dent goernment and activities in general. They will te told that a proper balance between scholarship and other interests will have to be made. With much new found wisdom the student will go to hi dormitory and get ready for the first day of classes. Soon the student finds out that the Honor Sy tern does not work too well, and that the noise i many dormitory corridors makes study impossibl and life only a little unhappy. At about this tim they also find that one in five. If that many, pro feasors that they have for freshman courses are interesting not even stimulating. . , So. quite early about one-fourth of them pledge fraternities and more than half of those are never sen doing something useful for themselves between that time and graduation. Others will take out their sorrows on the Tempo Room or the Rathskeller late in the evening, and others still will shortly drop out. Almost all will forget their academic load until before the quiz and then assimilate what k necess ary for quick regurgitation on the next day. They will be attuned to assimilating fact temporarily with out placing the fact into context. They will be at tuned not to think, and even those who came here not looking for a higher paying job as the primary result of a college education, will give up their goal early. Those persistent enough to continue with in tellectual pursuit will find it difficult to find peo ple to converse with about anything save liquor, ex. and past experiences. A feeble attempt will be made by some to participate in activities, but Io mrtst this will mean lines in a yearbook rather than a personal contribution. By the end of their sophomore year, those who have not received a high office will retire perma nently to the bar stool or the uncomfortable cots that grace most dormitories and fraternities. They will content themselves "with the activity of a Satur day night party or the intellecual pursuit of Mickey Mantle's batting average. They will be by the end of college little changed for the better by their four years. They will be reactors rather than thinkers. They will be waiters rather than doers. They will be part of society at the expense of their own Individuality. They will be intellectually dead. There will be several who will become "teach ers." but there will be but one or two teachers. There will bo a few who will become ''lawyers," but there may be one lawyer. There will be many writ ers and businessmen, but few will see their writing? in print and few will rise above wanting to make the most money for themselves. There will be some scientists, but few with the prospective to place the greatly growing body of knowledge into. There will be a few "leaders" and probably no leader. Many will not finish school. Those that do finish will listen to a brilliant com mencement, speech by a famous person and com ment on h.)w brilliant the speech was largely be cause they know that the person must be famous for some reason. Few will question how and why he got his fame and almost no one will carry the word 5 of the speaker into life. Embarking on the long voyage of life outside the ivory tower, "America's future leaders" will b? the same generation as the last. They will plunge themselves into Spanish-American Wars, as quickly as they react "Coca-Cola" to. 'The Pause That Re freshes." They will hear the word communist, social ist, radical, non-conformist, and even individualist and react negatively not knowing what they are re acting to, but blindly taking somebody else's word for it. In they the future leaders, as they have been called, lies not the hope of America but the prom ise of its annihilation in an ge when annihilation can be accomplished easily. This will happen as surely as you are reading this. UNLESS . . . Unless they as individuals try to find what they are and preserve the uniqueness of themselves. Unless they resist the tide that chips at and ebbs away the curiosity that should be native to students. Unless they become actively critical of their so ciety and work, not just gripe, towards its improvement. Unless they realize that reality is not a social whirl but rather is a problem worth coming to grips with and working out on a day to day basis. Unless they shake the cliches and customs that society has forced upon them and they have ac cepted as making it the easiest way. Unless they refuse to subvert themselves at all times to the will of the group. Unless they think. The wading against the stream Is the most dif ficult. It demands courage and endurance. A suc cessful passage, however, has rewards that far out number any of those received going another way. The road to a personal sense of well-being lies this way; the road to a personal Hell lies in the other direction. The alternatives are clear. It is their choice. They will probably make the wrong one. Mil Davis B. Young 1959-60 Editor, The Daily Tar Heel (As Editor of the University paper, I am taking this oppor tunity to discuss some of the ma jor problems confronting the Uni versity of North Carolina. It is imperative that an enlightened student population be fully cogni zant of the issues confronting this state university in the next few years. I hope that through the presentation of the following information both new and old students will have a greater ap preciation of the chalcnge con fronting them in Chapel Hill. Th nine points mentioned in this study will be the basis of a large portion of the editorial comment which will appear in this naptr in the course of the academic year. The Editor.) incoming freshmen have gradu ated in the upper one half cf their high school graduating class. We wonder what the other 15Tf arc doing here? We further wonder whether the tHr"r who were in the upper half of these rlasses were in re ality tho really top students. Un fortunately a check of the re cords will reveal that a large part of the superior high school stu dents of this state (upper 10' i ) are not matriculating here. There is no distinction to be found in mediocrity. Obviously then, we see that two educational birds may be killed with one aca demic stone. Tighten the admis sion requirements, thus attract ing a higher calibre of students, and you can cut the growth at ence. A student must learn to use what he receives in class during his time in other work at the Uni versity, and v-ce versa. He must be taught to make a practical application of his knowledge. Point Four. This concerns the budget. Aside from the obvious pun, a serious financial problem exists at Carolina. The State As sembly played butcher with this biennium's budget for the Con solidated University of North Car olina. Despite some last minute restorations of funds, particular ly pertaining to the faculty, we are faced with the ugly possibili ty of having to hold the status quo on a shoestring, with pro gress being next to impossible. In jts-t another year and a half we will become involved in an- Wednesday, thanks to some skullduggery in the tion. of student government leaders. local YMCA, it was my privilege to address 130 We will continue to wage "The They tend to group cliques and freshman at the annual Y' orientation camV Case for a New Student Union," political organisations under . . ... wo mpt ,vas rsthpr , f. - . t The mam room in which we met was raxner siz?- behevmg that a new modern un- these convenient headings. We m hin nPrhan ai aDie. l estimate una iuum juv. r- icn can be an integral part of the life of a large university. Point Six. We have always tak en a great pride in Chancellor Aycock's un - compromising sup- many as four thermonuclear bombs, with an ex- strenuously object to this narrow It is somewhat unfortunate Pive power equivalent to approximately 40,000, that the University which has 000 tons of TNT- long claimed to be the hot-bed jf we had filled that room with four thermonukes. port of academic freedom on this of liberalism has fallen into the everybody would have wandered by, and said. campus. This has been greatly ap preciated by both students and faculty members. It is imperative that any facul ty member discuss ideas and con cepts, whether they are foreign to our beliefs and best interests or not. The only way to under stand and improve our surround ings, to realize the significance of our heritage and to give birth to our own ideas is to be ac quainted with the culture, heri- s- During the past few years, par- U" V - & V K &?i'?K;&'' - -V ' , Jf n ticularly since our friends to tho ?' W tf.iKSV 'Vtttfjf ' - e east launched the firt Sputnik, 'r?V 9 -X.W-M: ?A V 2? ? the issue of education in Ameri- "ti V V:T V , T - 'Tl FHtfWV , S " " , ?t ca and the crisis therein has been V?V - t V":A - V , ' - 'SJ V ' ' onP of the cn-at. burnir.a issues i . ' v . i . l V" ft ' t h " ....... ; . fc t . P Jr. James B. Conant has done a monumental two year study of secondary schools; Slringfel'ow Barr, Robert Goheen. Ilollis Ed ens, Mason Gross and others havs all spoken out as academicians, warning America thut she must mend her educational ways. And here at the University of North Carolina, those of us who have been here for a few years have seen manifestations of this current crisis on our own camp us. We can think of no more fit ting time or more proper place to discuss the problems of this great university than in the first, issue of the year. We hasten to break precedent, the long established rule of this paper to use its first editorial page to give a warm welcome to new students, say how glad wo arc that old acquaintances havrt returned and to speak in mean ingless platitudes. Viewing The Daily Tar Heel as an educational enterprise, the Editor happily takes this oppor tunity to explain some of the key issues in Chapel Hill in the hope that the reader wil have a better understanding of his own needs the needs of this University and of the State of North Carolina. There are now over 7.500 of us in our academic community, ob viously then, the first problem is the problem of prowth. If this large figure scares you (aim it should), imagine what this Uni versity will be like in 1970. when it will hit its expected peak of 14.000. We question whether we must continue to yield to the pressures of legislators in Raleigh and the secondary schools of this state by admitting an ever increasing number of new students. We do not feel that Carolina should be a disposal plant for every young ster in this state who thinks "he might just like to come here for awhile. The University of North Caro lina must push itself to the cen ter of the state's higher education system. There are other state col leges which can pick up the slack. We maintain that growth is fine when it can lead to a heal thier situation for this University and for the citizens of North Car olina. But. we assert that growth for the sake of growth alone is an unfortunate occurence. We do not. object to a large number of people pursuing higher education on this campus. But, we do object to the alti tude that prevails here and throughout the state that UNC is obligated to educate and train for positions of leadership in the future, a great many individuals who because of their educational backgrounds or intellectual short comings are not thusly suited. The General Assembly was most generous in granting fund; for items pertaining to growth such as new dorms and caTeter ias, but gave a noticeable mone tary slap in the face to the library and faculty. This University must strive to meet the needs of those already here before making plans to increase the enrollment to grandiose proportions. Bigness does not rean great ness. Coincidental with the problem of growth is the issue of admis sion standards. It probably comes as no great shock to you for us to assert that perhaps there are a few of you here for Orientation Week who should never have been admitted in the first place. Chancellor William B. Aycock while speaking to the annual A lumni Association banquet last spring remarked that 85 of the I 1 -t A- iff i x - V :1T - . position of tagging its citizens oOOOH, AAAAAAAH, WHAT POTENTIAL!" with these titles, not exactly a liberal thing to do. Currently. But the room was not filled with thermonukes. both campus political parties are It was filled with something vastly more impressive anything but liberal. 150 bright American boys. My God, what potential Student leaders brand anything these kids have got! To borrow from the Bible, and anybody , who is for change, they have the potential to move mountains, if they progress and anti-status quo is only will. They have potential to move the earth, being radical. change the destiny of man. Their potential, in con- They accept the title of conser- trast with that of the bombs, is absolutely unlimited, vatives themselves. The true lib- that,g nQt quife true Thdr potential is not eral the person who will speaK unljmited potential is VERY limited, very out for the basic rights of indi- limited by their daring (0f lack lhcreof)f very limit. vidua.s, who believes in an ex- ed their yision anf, intellectual strength (or lack change of ideas and who is not nereof) afraid to put his political future at the University on the line is In four years, this University will, of course, sadly lacking. chop them down to size. When they get to that final The bright young lad, the push- finish line, when they think like robots, then they er and hustler, is soon swept into are ready for the degree and what is loosely called the tide of expediency or back- "the world." The University (like all institutions slapping. It is hoped that from will largely vitiate the enormous potential, the exub within the ranks of the new slu- erent vitality that I saw in such abundance Wednes dents here this week will arise day. leaders who will resist these pres- , ., . . sures and temptations. But is Pssible' 18 ll Just baJely PS,f ,e th?t We must push for increased one or PerhaPs more o tnose boyos survlve freedom of student action and ur years in this University? ill survive. that is, as thinking human beings, rather than me chanical robots? Is this possible? A STUDY BREAK IN THE SPRING AS EXAM PRESSURE GETS GREAT the same tim?. In any frank discussion of the problems corurrntin-j th? Univer sity of North Carolina, we must arrke ;it a section devoted to the creation of a preper academic at mosphere, currently missing. There is too much emphasis placed on non-scholarly pursuit. The common student (and most of us are) takes the dim view that something is the matter with po ple who are artistically inclined. IIo laughs at other students who write poetry, he discourages the hoy down the hall from lak ing part in dramatic prescnta- other crucial budget fight in Ra- tage and ideas of other, prior and leigh. The t?l that student gov- contrary philosophies, crnmcnt zjl young lobbyists can The purpose of education play in such a monetary power should be to stimulate thought, play is large. There is no better way to do this It, is certainly not too early for than to exchange ideas in an new students to acquaint them- open atmosphere, selves with the financial needs The duty of this University is of this University. As for this current biennium'. we can only be thankful for John Motley Morehead and other gen erous benefactors of Carolina. Point Five. "The Case for a New Student Union" is the titl? of this point. The University . of Wisconsin has a splendid union. tions. he chides his roommate for So does the University of Texas spending too many hours in the library and not enough at the fra ternity house, he thinks his lan guage instructor is an oddball be cause he once spent a year in France on a Fullbright Scholar ship eet.. ad inliuitum. He admires brawn, alehohoiic capacity and longs for his sopho more year when he can have a car. Obviously this student is not making the proper contribution to the campus at large. Any academic achievements he makes (if he makes any at all) are completely overshadowed by and the University of Oklahoma. In case you can't afford a trip to one of these schools, you can see equally superior facilities at W.C.U.N.C. in Greensboro and at State College in Raleigh. At Carolina though, we see an edifice built over 30 years ago, obviously meant to accomodate to provide the tools with which young scholars ''may seek the truth " whatever it may be. Point Seven. This deals with athletics (mostly big-time around here) and the effect they can produce on the campus. We wholeheartedly approve of big time athletics. At the same time, we give a ringing endorsement to big-time academics. We do not object to athletic scholarships as long as the ath lete is capable of and indeed does meet his academic responsibili ties. Big-time athletics can be a healthy stimulant to any campus. Aside from the obvious finan- the perpetuation of our autono my. They were not easily won, but can be lost at a moment's If SOi then which of these boys has Destiny nPtiCe- tapped? Because, you may be sure, this lonely in- Point Nine. Our final aspect of dividual is just about the most important guy on this introductory editorial deals this c!mpUS. He is the guy that this campus is her? with individuality or the lack for It is for him that chancellor Aycock arrives thereof on the Carolina campus. at ;vork every morniRg at 7 o'clock. It is for him There is nothing wrong with that janitors aRd teachers and clerks and stenog- Ivy League clothes. At the same raphers exert themselves. All the rest of us are ju -t time, there is nothing evil about along for the ride But there exists the haunting growing beards. Beer is nice, but possibility that cne of these new freshman is dif- soft drinks are fine too. Fraterni- ferent is here to play or kceps ties are loads of fun, but there And the other 'Y' campers, the Flain Joes. Wrhat of them? Their potent al, so impressive Wedne?- But, these are merely the per- d3' more impressive than thermonukes, will di?.- ipheral aspects of individuality. "Wrhat will make you stand a part from the crowd will be cou rage and creativity." Nobody will hand thpsp tn von thpv arp nr- quired through hard work. But ! "jHf, Crudal qUestin is: H0W MUCH F A just the desire to work at this will set you apart from most. The choice is yours. only a fraction of the present cial gains from winning teams, student population. A student un ion can and should be the center of campus activity, literally the home away from home. Aside from the social outlet that a modern union can provide, there is created a unity among students, a sort of nationalism or better yet campusism. What we do object to is the sort of emphasis on athletics and de-emphasis on the books that these immature attitudes which office space is also provided for has hurt so many fine schools in have been known to prevail here Any student can be a well rounded nobody, but true aca demic prowess is demanding of respect. The number one chal- all student organizations. the past few years. This we must Presently, an outmoded Gra- guard against, ham Memorial Building on this There is no reason why this campus is Jacking in both of University can't have both the these fields. If the State Assem- best football team and the best lenge confronting the University bly will not help us, as it helped library in the country, of North Carolina today is to find W.C. and State in their recent Point Eight. We are here con- the means by which a student quests for new unions, we will be cerned with isms. We refer to may understand and benefit from forced to build our own union conservatism, liberalism and rad- through a process of self-liquida- icalism, the three favorite words the "totality of university experi- S as V (' . ' . " . i- ' -JL- " " ' r ' . - tJf; -A 1 '-. I ; s-v-' - .; ' 1 :l!v I rUh(U 2 'hz r , . "5 - . " . s .'' 3 ' ' ' , ' - . . , ........ i , ,- . -1. ';'.j..,f.T ;. .: " ; . . a - - - . - -a - -v " 2 ' - v y . : v - A ---.- . - : 4 , - - - r . . - - t- , j. - . hli.ii.iii 1 if irn.ir.li ..i.iM.r.i.in mn, ... -, - B-rr fffft i . 1 n im4TTfJ iS'yif f- i" --f- 1 is just as much dignity in dormitories. sipate in daily driblets of confusion compounded. But will there be a residue? Wrhen, as hardened cynical seniors they step forward to receive their diplomat will there be anything of this once-magnificent p tential left? The answer to this question is Yes, but RESIDUE? It is the nature of man to grow older, to vitiat? his potential, to grow weaker, and to die. It is th? Expediency points to conformi- nature of institutions to assist materially in this pro ty. cess. Russian institutions work, in this respect, just And so that's it. Just nine short like American institutions. You may be sure, that points, a mere handful of issues. at tnis very moment a group of Russian freshmen There are many more, even some are entering the University of Moscow, or the Liii that transcend these in impor- versity of Leningrad. Their potential too is enor tance. Rightly or wrongly, we mous. Their potential too will be dissipated, as thev have perhaps been a little pessi- become "educated," wise in the devious ways of mistic in this, the opening edi- "the world." But in the U.S.S.R., as in the good old torial of the 1959-60 journalistic U.S.A., there will be a residue of that burning youth season, ful enthusiasm. But, take- comfort and be se- Will the Kussian residue be greater than ours7 cure in the knowledge that thesen such Questions hang the delicate future of the are not problems which are uni-s. world que to the University of North : And is there something, anything, that this Lmi Carolina. They are fourid on vir- :versity fan do to keeP alive the precious enthusiasm tually every campus in America, of its freshmen? Dr. George V. Tajdor heads an in particularly at state universities, "teresting program for "superior" freshmen. Is Dr. There is nothing 'inherently Tavlor getting enough support? What does he need, wrong with having these pro- and how can we helP et il for him? blems. Perhaps because of their And what about those freshmen who are not presence, Carolina will someday "superior"? What about the boy who came up to be a better place, because bein me Wednesday and asked if he should start reading like a fighter, we' will fight best the New York Times? vrhat can we do for this par when we are hungry. ticuiar boy, who right now wants an education so The only wrong, is the wrong badly he can taste it? manifested by various inhabitants I never pretend to have any answers (least of all of Chapel Hill who don't make an ft final exam time). But these new freshmen cer effort to understand and to cope tainly raise the most haunting kind of questions, with these issues. These people Good luck to them, and good luck to us. represent the biggest problem of : all. So. if you are unafraid to face reality, if you are willing to con tribute your bast, if you have the courage to stand up for princi- The offidal s(udent Mication of th PubIication .. . .. Board of the Umversitv of North Cam ma uhpro ? W$t atlj tEar led up the energy to pursue the pur pose and the direction of making Carolina a better place, and if you believe in the ultimate poten tial of this University, then WELCOME. If not, you are the loser as well as the University. is published daily except Monday and examination periods and summer terms. Entered as second class matter in the post office in Chapel Hill, N. C. under the act of March 3, 1870. Subscription rates: $4.00 per se mester, $7.00 per year. The Daily Tar Heel is printed by r 4 j Site of hr y-mvt?rs.tv ; J North Carotiou .; ; : : oitte! t& doors f - vi iter the News Inc., Carrboro, N. C. f -- s Editor Associate Editors DAVIS B. YOUNG FRANK CROWTHER RON SHUMATE LOUIS ROUND WiLSON LIBRARY, THE CENTER OF INTELLECTUAL PURSUIT Same Edits The editorial page of today's issue of The Daily Tar Heel is a re-print from the Special Freshman Edition which ap peared on Monday. It is being re-printed because we feel that the information con tained therein is pertinent to both old and new students. The editor Mould like to take this opportunity to extend a wel come to all new students and to say hello again to returning Business Manager WALKER BLANTON veterans of the Chapel Hill TT - scene. Advertising Manager JOHN M INTER As in past years, The Daily News Editors Tar Heel will continue to hit all of the issues, avoiding no items of importance. Letters to the editor are encouraged, but Feature Editor must be signed. We will leave your name off in publication when so requested. Assistant To Editor GINNY ALDIGE Managing Editor CHUC K ROSS Sports Editor DEE DANIELS EDWARD NEAL RINER ELLIOTT COOPER MARY ALICE ROWLETTE Coed Editor JOSIE MORRIS Night Editor GARY R. GREER
Daily Tar Heel (Chapel Hill, N.C.)
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Sept. 18, 1959, edition 1
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