I
Pi
Page Two
The Salem ite
Editor-in-Chief Laurie Daltrofl
Associate Editor Chris Moran
Business Manager Alden Hanson
Advertising AAanager Chris Minter
Monday, February 26, 1973
Office Hours: 5:00 - 7:30 p.m. Weekdays
Phone 723-7961 Ext. 250
or cabbages
and kings
bjr Sarali Dorriar
It takes two to speak the truth. . . one to speak and
another to hear.
- Henry David Thoreau
My mother and I are forever picking at each other for not re
membering things. SHE thinks I didn’t tell her the date of a party
when I know perfectly well I did, and I am positive she failed to
mention Aunt Agatha’s illness although she swears she wrote me a-
bout it, etc., etc....
Sound familiar? Maybe the problem is purely due to lack of
memory. I’m certainly no elephant-mind, but I refuse to believe I’m
turning senile at the tender age of twenty-one. No, the problem is
not lack of memory; it’s lack of hearing.
Ours is a society in which everybody talks (some more constantly
than others) but very few listen. We are egotistically preoccupied
with the sound of our own voices, chattering on and on, giving opin
ions (sometimes informed but always infallible) on every conceivable
subject.
Now, these opinions may or may not be truth. Old Henry David
Thoreau was a mighty smart fellow; he knew that hearing the truth
is just as important as speaking it. But, nowadays, nobody wants to
listen for the truth. Because, obviously, if you’re hearing it, that
means somebody else thought of it first.
Having done an amateur case study. I’ve come to the conclusion
that Salem College is suffering from a slight hearing disability. I can’t
pin my diagnosis on any one particular symptom; the malfunction is
much too general in nature. At present, the damage to vital organs
is minimal, but, if the malfunction is not corrected, permanent crip
pling may result.
In a community as small as ours, even a slight malfunction can
be disastrous. One or two sweeping generalizations coming from the
right people can blow up into a cloud that makes Hiroshima look
like a tempest in a teapot. Misunderstandings caused by misinforma
tion can make mountains out of even the smallest molehills.
Salem need not be a rumor factory. The truth can be found, but
only if the students, faculty, and administration are willing to hear
it. Perhaps communication would improve if we turned our voices
inwards and our ears outwards.
Are you listening?
Salem’s calling you . . .
Group Reviews
A petition was submitted to Pam Poe and Christina Spence,
the Scholarship Committee re- President of Salem’s student gov-
questing that certain students ernment association,
holding absolute offices of the
Student Government Association The Scholarship Committee
of Salem College be exempt from determined that it was not em-
the 120 hour annual work re- powered to act on the request
quirement for a general scholar- because guidelines pertaining to
ship. The petition was started by scholarships must be drawn up.
TH^ SAL^EMITt
Monday, February 26,197-2
Prof Questions Paper, Sale
To the Editor:
I have been attempting to ig
nore, that I might live with,
half-truths for almost two weeks
now. The February 12, 1973
edition of the Salemite only
served as the ultimate catalyst
for such repressions. Suddenly
I realized that my belief in a
liberal education as an aid to
questioning and seeking univer
sal truths which touch the heart
of every human being, was be
coming a mockery. How could
I encourage my students to
delve for truth when the world
around them was suggesting that
they listen to, reflect on and
print statements which reveal,
at best, only half-truths; at
worst, only “off-the-cuff’ opin
ions?
I shall explain myself, initial
ly, by specific references to a
feature article in the most recent
Salemite concerned with the ap
pointment of a new academic
dean. I think the Salemite
should have listed, for general
information, the “Student re
presentatives, members of the
Board of trustees, faculty repre
sentatives and the administra
tion” who “chose Ms. Somer
ville from applicants that come
from California, New York
and other states.” I think the
Salemite should have sought to
determine the method of ap-
pointmerit and continuity of this
group. I believe it would be of
great interest to the Salem com
munity as a whole to know to
what “education (sic!) institutes
around the country” Ms. Somer
ville’s work with the Institute
for Curricular Reform will be
taking her this spring. It would
be of interest to the Salem com
munity to know into what areas
Ms. Somerville’s spring studies
at Duke University are leading
her.
I find it difficult, personally,
to believe that Dean Hixson “ex
pressed surprise” upon receiving
news of Ms. Somerville’s ap
pointment. I find it inexcusable
that statements, which in retro
spect were deemed necessary to
black out, were permitted to go
to press at all. We all know the
Petition
EDITORIAL STAFF
BUSINESS STAFF
Hmwt Editor Ljuri Tumag*
Faatur* Editor Om Wilton
Layout Editor Corl Patquior
Copy EdMor Kathy Bacon
Rna Arti Editors. . . .Barbie Pfilagar
Marcia Qarratt
Photographer Anne Tillett
Advisor Mrs. J. W. Edwards
Circulation Manager ...
Lane Crawford
Mailing Manager Evie Yancy
Nancy Anderson
Muse of impiratlon
Mr. Bernhard von Nicolai
Member U. S. Student Press Associa
tion Intercollegiate Press
Alternative Features Service
THE SALEMITE is the Uncensored
Voice oi the Salem Community.
Application to mail at second-class
postage rates is pending at Winston-
Salem. N. C. 27108.
Published weekly, excluding exami
nations, holidays and summer vaca
tion. by Students of Salem College.
Subscription Price $5.00 yearly.
Mailing Address P. O. Box 10447
Salem Station. Winston-Salem. N C
27108.
submitted to the faculty and ap
proved by that group. This has
not yet been done.
In view of the need for scho
larship guideline approved by the
Academic Council, the petition
was referred to Dr. Chandler
and Dean Hixson. Christina
Spence, Pam Poe,Scottie Newell,
Catherine Cooper, Margaret
Brinkley, Averell Pharr and
Laurie Daltroff, 'members of the
committee who drew up the
petition, were notified by Dean
Hixson that students holding ab
solute offices in student govern
ment will be exempt from furth
er scholarship work for the re
mainder of this semester. This
means that holders of absolute
offices need not contribute scho
larship hours this spring as pre
viously arranged.
Dean Hixson said that guide
lines should be presented to the
faculty committee by the Scho
larship Committee by the end
of the year. From now until
that time, though, the students
on scholarships holding absolute
offices may replace their scho
larship work by services “per
formed to the college communi
ty.”
literary impact, indeed the dan
gers, of suggesting and leaving
the rest to the readers’ imagi
nations.
I should like to make several
observations on the article on
page two entitled “Salem Has
Busy Year”. I would suggest that
the phrase “curriculum rele
vance” is meaningless. A thing
can only be “relevant” in rela
tion to something else. To me,
somehow, the idea of Dean Hix
son “serving her last term” at
Salem College smacks either of
penal or political jargon but I
shall not belabor this point. I
think, as one of the four pro
fessors involved in the interdis
ciplinary experiment in Sou
thern Culture, I was supposed to
be complimented by the obser
vation that the program “is exci
ting students who have not en
joyed a single course at Salem”.
On the contrary, I was rather
disappointed by the shallowness
of such a statement and hope
that the students were also. I
have found, thus far, that the
backgrounds and enthusiasms
brought to the program by these
students from their varying disci
plines have been an integral part
of our explorations and are the
result of knowledge . gained
through the enjoyment of tra
ditional courses offered at Sa
lem.
I intend by my criticisms no
personal indictments. I do, how
ever, implore that the writers
of future Salemite articles make
a strong effort to search, gather
and sift truth from half-truth,
fact from fiction and hear-say.
presentatives and the adminh
tration. If, as you say, the &.
lemite should have investigated
and printed the method of an
pointment of the groups and
continuity of the groups partid
pating in the selection process’
you could be of great service bv
assisting us in providing this in
formation. We would welcome i
future report from you. Priory
your accusation, our reporters
had no premise for doubting the
accuracy of our news sources
We attempted to obtain infer’
mation objectively and without
a paranoid attitude. If you have
bases for feeling that we were
given “half-truths” and “off-the.
cuff opinions” by Dr. Chandler
and other sources, please let us
know.
11
We must admit that in the
Feb 12 Salemite we found one
piece of inaccurate information.
The statement arose from a mis
understanding on the part of the
reporter, who was unable to cor
rect her mistake before the pa
per went to press. The sentence
stating “This spring she will be
on campus part time because her
work with the Institute will take
her to education (sic) institutes
around the country,” should be
corrected. Ms. Somerville will be
on campus part time this spring
because she will be completing -
as a full time doctoral candidate
- her graduate course work at
Duke University. We refer you to
the interview with Ms. Somer
ville on page one of this issue to
answer your other questions.
Sally A. Rackley
Mrs. Rackley:
In stating that the Feb. 12
Salemite was the “Ultimate ca
talyst” for your repressions of
“half-truths,” you puzzled our
staff. You clarified your accusa
tion that we print half-truths by
referring to the front page article
entitled “Jan Somerville Named
New Academic Dean.”
As a head of a department,
Mrs. Rackley, and because of
your concern you probably have
access to information pertaining
to the method of appointment
of Ms. Somerville, and the part
played in her setection by “stu
dent representatives, members of
the Board of Trustees, faculty re-
Our staff recognises, Mrs.
Rackley, that you are concerned
with upgrading the standards of
journalism at Salem College and
we are very grateful.
-Editor
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