THE TWIG
■ NEWSPAPER OF THE STUDENTS OF MEREDITH COLLEQE
Volume LXI NUMBER 19
Meredith College
MAY 2. 1983
Indian ambassador visits Meredith
By Linda Sellers
Mohandas Gandhi was "a
great and chaiming human
being,” according to K.R.
Narayanan, ami^assador of
India to the United States, who
spoke at Meredith College Aprii
19.
Narayanan met the Indian
leader in 1945 on a day when
Gandhi was on a “silence fast.”
Gandhi replied to all questions
in a written forni.
“Gandhi believed that all
people are a mixture of good
and evil," said Narayanan. “He
wanted to strip away the legal
and moral clothing that violence
has (and show it as) sheer evil.’’
The ambassador said that
he had watched the movie
"Gandhi’’ and that it was a
“wonderful movie and faithful
representation of Gandhi,”
Narayanan's visit to
Meredith was a follow-up to an
Indian trip last summer
sponsored by Meredith College
for professors frcim Raleigh
colleges and universities.
Mrs. Evelyn Slmrrons,
Meredith business professor,
organized the trip, which was
funded by a Fuibright-Hays
grant.
K. R. Narayanan, ambassador of India to the United Slates, speaks at a press conference during his visit to the Meredith
campus on Aprii 19. His wife is pictured In the t}aclground. [NORTON PHOTO]
Two women speakers featured
at Meredith College graduation
Two female speakers will
highlight commencement
exercises at Meredith this year.
TTie Rev. Paula Clayton will
present the baccalaureate
sermon at 10:00 a.m. on
Wednesday, May 4 and Dr,
Betty Siegal, President of
Kennesaw College, will deliver
the commencement address at
10:00 a.m. on Sunday, May 15,
Rev. Clayton is a 1977.
graduate of Mwedith College
and 1981 graduate of
Southeastern Baptist
Theological Seminary. She is
presently the pastor of Mintz
Baptist Church in Roseboro.
Dr. Betty L. Siegel became
President of Kennesaw College
in Septemljer 1981. She is the
first female president in the 33-
unit University System of
Georgia.
Dr. Siegal was Dean of the
School of Education and
Psychology and Professor of
Psychology at Westem Carolina
University, Cullowhee, from
1976 to 19&1, She was the first'
woman academic dean in the
90-year history of that in
stitution.
She was Dean of Academic
Affairs for Continuing
Education at the University of
Florida from 1972-76, Professor
of Psychologoical Foundations
in the College of Education and
an Associate in the Institute for
the Development of Human
Resources, At the time of her
appointment to the Deanship in
1972, she was the highest
ranking vroman administrator in
the State University System of
Florida.
Dr. Siegel received the Ph.-
D, degree from Florida State
University, the Master’s degree
in education from the University
of North Carolina at Chapel Hill,
the A. A. degree from Cum
berland College, and the B.A.
degree from Wake Forest
University. She also has done
two years post-doctoral study
in clincial child psychology at
Indiana University,
Before joining the Florida
faculty in 1967, she taught at
Indiana University and Lenoir
Rhyne College.
Dr, Siegel has served as
President of the Southern
Council of Teacher Education,
The National Commission on
Programs and Projects for the
American Association of
Colleges of Teacher Education,
and the Executive Council for
the Teacher Education Council
of State Colleges and
Universities.
In 1969, she was selected
from more than 2,200 University
of Florida faculty members as
one of three recipients of the
Standard Oil Award of $1000 for
Excellence in Teaching. In 1973,
she was honored by Mortar
Board, National Women’s
Honor Society, as the first
recipient of the Women of the
Year at the University of
Florida, in 1979, she was
chosen as the Outstanding
Educator of the Phi Delta Kappa
Western Regional Chapter: that
same year she v^s named as
Outstanding Alumnus of
Cumberland College, in Sep
tember, 1962 she was awarded a
Distinguished Service Citation
from Wake Forest University.
Her area of specialization
is Life Span Development
Psychology, She speaks to
groups frequwtly on these
topics; ^rly Childhood
Education, the Middle School
Dr. Betty Siegal, President of
Kennasaw College, will be the
commencement spealer for
Meredith when the Class of '83
graduates at 10 a.m. Sunday,
May 75;
Child, Invitational Education,
The Economically Disad
vantaged, the Aged, Life-long
Learning, and the Concerns of
Women.
Narayanan, who called
Gandhi a “very shrewd
politician" said that some
people seem frightened by the
idea of peace represented by
Gandhi, but he added that men
of peace have always aroused
great opposition from the
people.
Indians of Gandhi's time
looked on him as a freedom
fighter, Narayanan s^d.
Thousands of ordinary Indians
(often peasants) followed
Gandhi because they believed
his non-violent methods would
bring India independence.
When asked about U.S.-
Indian relations, Narayanan
said that relations had often
been indifferent between the
two countries, but lately had
become t«tter. He noted that
there were no bi-lateral dif
ferences between the two
nations. Just differences in their
approach to the rest of the
world.
“(U.S. and India) have
much in common, but global
issues come in-between,” he
said.
Reflecting on the policies
of India, Narayanan said. "The
basic principle in Indian society
has been toleration. 4f you have
toleration, every aspect of life
becomes gentler.”
He said that although India
has a history of a philosophy of
peace and toleration, Indian
people have the same in
clinations to violence as other
people.
Narayanan noted that even
though India had the
technology to make nuclear
weapons, the government
favors a nuclear freeze.
According to Narayanan,
India has progressed from a
"stan/ing nation” to a t^ically
self-sufficent one. India now
has the third largest trained
manpower force and is the tenth
largest industrial society in the
world.
"As a result of all this,”
Narayanan said, "the average
expectation of life has in
creased from 33 years in 1957 to
56 today.”
Narayanan said that India
still has tremendous problems
to deal with, but the country
has managed to operate a
democratic system through free
elections throughout the years.
Narayanan was appointed
as Indian ambassador to the
U.S. in 1980, He has also served
as the Indian ambassador to
Thailand and the People’s
Republic of China.
FEsmai
1
Logo for the
Medieval Festival
Fall: ^83
I