fate 2
THE TWIG
^PTEMBER23. 1985
In Praise of Meredith
by Beth Blankenship
Co-edllor
Cynthia and I recently gave out Twig
questionnaires in order to gain more in
sight into what the students wanted out
of their school newspaper. T^ere was
one response which I received that I
would like to address. This response is
surprisingly not in the paper’s defense
tHit in the defense of Meredith.
The respondent of this questionnaire
saldshehadshownacopyof The Twfg
to someone outside of the campus to
show them “The hypocris/’ of the
Meredith campus. She further went on
to say that Meredith College “Is a
Christian school only in name.” Being a
journalist of sorts, I wanted to investi
gate this claim before making a judg
ment. Her argument holds no water.
When your parents tell you that you
cannot have a setf-determlnlng curfew,
they are looking out for your best in
terest. Whether you choose to follow
this rule Is an option. If you choose not
to follow this rule set down by your par
ents, does this make them bad parents?
Of course not. Meredith promotes a
Christian atmosphere through Wednes
day morning chapel servtoes, MCA
activities, the hor>or code, and discipit-
nary measures. Whether the students
choose to go to chapel, follow the hon
or code and rules, or join MCA is an in
dividual's ^ion. tf they chose not to
participate, this does not make Mere
dith any less of a ChristianMMlented
campus.
Girls here know that there is a life
outside the Meredith community.
Meredith gives the students the free
dom to partidpate in such activities;
however, the school does discourage
some activities. A case in point is
found on page 17 of the Student Hand
book. The line to which I refer is “The
College strongly discourages the use of
alcoholk: t>everages by Meredith Stu
dents.” This particular line says
nothing about alcohol on c^pus but
alcohol in general. Would you see that
in State's handbook or UNCs? I dout>t
it;
The school is founded on Christian
traditions, t>eing a Baptist college, and
this is always prevalent during religious
holidays. Prayers are said, and the
spirit of God and goodwiti always enter
into the event. If a student doesn't feel
it, is that Meredith’s fault?
Christianity is t»sed on free will and
choice. Christ gives us choices arKJ
hopes that through his guidance we
make the Christiw decision. Meredith
too gives us choices and hopes through
their Christian influence we make the
Christian choices. One cannot blame
individual actions on the entire group.
Nor can one say that Meredith is a
Christian college In name only.
Letter to the Editor
To the Editor:
My reaction to Susan Goins' article in
The Twig, “Being Concerned." was
shock and anger at her accusing Mere
dith of having “an incredible lack of
concern for world Issues and social
concerns.” I personally resent such a
slur greatly, and hope I am speaking for
many others at Meredith. I agree with
her atxMJt what an important purpose
the CROP walk serves, but what I resent
is her tactics in attempting to drum up
participation. I refuse to believe, as she
said, that Meredith students “don't
care” or have a “Better them than us"
attitude.
Personally, I believe people lean
more toward the “I'm j ust one person —
what can I do?” end of the spectrum.
The only way to overcome this barier is
for masses of peopietor^ect this atti
tude and tsto action. I also resent her
assertion that ttte Meredith campus is
not socially aware. Anyone with the ir)-
telligence to be in college Is socially
aware, to some extent. The issue at
hand is to take advantage of community
opportunities to make a difference in
society, not to insult the Meredith com
munity as “enttarassrng.”
I’m sick of hearing Meredith policies
being vaguely criticized with no solu
tions being proposed, it reariy saddens
me to see one Meredith student so
openly attempt to enlist its help in a
noble cause like the CROP walk. In my
opinion, low participation in one event
does not create a campus-wide trend.
Thank you.
UsaPlercy
214 Barefoot
Is Meredith's Christian reputation a target for hypo&isy?
MRA is Ready
by Beth Kennedy
Contributing reporter
Meredith Recreation Association is
ready for you — Meredith. Are you
ready to get involved? We are expecti ng
you to be ready and waiting for a lot of
greet things to l^ppen. To plan for
these great things MF^ had an exciting
retreat. The retreat was held at Camp
Caswell on September 6-6. The week
end consisted of planning for Com-
huskin, intramurais, and the other
events that MRA spc^sors. MRA has
got things in motion. We just want you
to know that m are truly 6Mcited and
ready for the events, and all that Is
needed is you. Help MRA make this
year a great one!
Students' Rights Under The Family
Educational Rights and Privacy Act
TTte Family Educational Rights and
Privacy Act of 1974 is a Federal law
which states that a written institu
tional policy must t» established and
(b) that a statement of adopted proced-
; covering the privacy hghts of stu
bs made available. The law pro
vides that the institution will msdntain
the confidentiality of student education
reconjs.
MEREDITH COLLEGE accords al) the
rights under the law to students who
are declared independent. No or« out
side thte institution shall have access to
nor will the institution disclose any in-
fonnation from students' except to per
sonnel within the institution, to offi
cials of other institutior>s In which stu
dents seek to enroll, to persons or or
ganizations providing students finan
cial aid, to accrediting ^lencies cany-
ing out their accreditaticHi functk^n, to
pers(Xts in compliance with a judicial
order, and to persons in an emergency
in order to protect the health or saftty
of students or other persons. All these
mceptions are permitted under the Act.
Within the MEREDITH COLLEGE
community, only those nr>embers, indi-
viduaily or collectively, acting in the
students’ educational interest are al
lowed access to student education re
cords. These members include person
nel in the Offices of the Registrar, Rn-
anciat Akl, Adminions, and ttie Dean
of Students, and academic personnel
within the limitations of their need to
know.
At its discretion the institution may
provide Directory information in accor
dance virith the provisions of the Act to
include: student name, address, tele
phone number, date and place of birth,
field of study, dates of attend-
religious affiliation, degrees and
awards received, the most recent pre
vious educational agency or Institution
attended by the student, participation
in officially recognized activities and
sports, and weight and height of menv
t«rs of athletic teams. Students may
withhold Directory Infonnation by noti
fying the Registrar in writing within two
weeks after the first day of class for the
[Continued on page 3]
The TWIG
Meredith CoUege. Raleigh, N.C. 27607
Co-editors
Beth Blankenship Cynthia Church
Powell
Goodman
Cherry
Sally Woolard
Haven Cooper
Sbeirl Pernell
Jennifer Jackson
Cindy Patterson
Stephanie Bennett
Kim McOiiaig
l^rie Hastings
Jennifer Bruffey
Suzanne Griffin
Margaret Beall
Laura Schaffer
Managing Editors
Business Manager
Advertising Manager
Public Relations Manager
Public Relations Staff
Prooh-eader
Photc^apher
Circulation Managers
Mary Ann
Sus
Edy
Sarah
Wendy
Circulation Staff
Layout Managers
J^
TracyMarie Dunn
Casey Hass
Dr. Tom Parramore
Freshman Seminar Reporter
AdviSM-
mmmrn
•- 7?ie Ttm, 80X Xfsa^ NC