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Meredith Herald Volume XIII. Issue 14 ]Ve attract brieht. talented, ambitious students. Naturally we're a women's colleee. January 29. 1997 Public History major to begin in fall 1997 By Emily Fulghum Are you interested in woikiugio a museum, in archives or at a historical site? Theu a degree in public history would belp-to make these jobs, as well as many olhers in the same field, avail able without having a graduate degree. Until now, that was the only way students in tlie United States could be exposed to this type of curriculum. Dr. Bill Price, along with E)rs. Frank Grubbs and Michael Novak, has been working to setup an undergraduate degree program in public his tory at Meredith, and in M of 1997, the major will be offered for the first time. “To our knowledge, this program will be the first of its kind to be offered at an under graduate level anywhere in the country,” said Price. “Many schools, such as NCSU, have excellent graduate programs in public history. But ours is different from agraduateprogram in that they are much more intense. We wiD pre pare students for a whole range of opportunities at «)Uy-level positions such as field surveyors, managers at small historic sites or jobs any one of the 200 independent history-related or ganizations in ilie Southeast.” Price also stated that Meredith is an ideal institutiCH) at which to launch this new major because of its location. He said that “tliis pro gram is feasible because Meredith is located in Raleigh.” Price continued. “There are a num ber of opportunities for internships or ‘hands- on’ experiences. Places like the new Museum of Development or any of the surrounding historical sites offer a good training ground for students in this major.” Whea Price began this endeavor, he brought to it his vast experience in this field. For 25 years, he woriced for the Division of Archives and History of North Carolina, and for 15 of those years, he was director of the division. When he retired from this position in 1995 and joined the faculty of the Meredith history de- parmient, tlie division was tlie largest state historical agency in the United States. There fore, as he began brainstorming about the new major in September of 1996. his long service and conaections served him well in the quest for more information and ideas on starting a program in public history. Price and Novak went to representatives of various public his tory agencies in Raleigh to determine the criteria degree candidates would have to meet to find employment. The next step was lookiug through the MeredithCourseGuide to see what classes were already offered and what classes they would have to introduce to suit the major. Price said that this task was “no t too bard because Meredith already offers so many courses that we needed due to our program's similarity to an American history major.” However, the history depart ment has revamped some existing elective courses to offer courses specifically designed and required for a public history major. Eighteen to 24 hours must be completed in these required courses. Optional related courses, which make up the remaining 12-lS hours, include art, busi ness, computer, speech, interior design, educa tion, economic, and English classes. This new major has generated a lot of excite ment in the history department. When asked about his opinion of this new endeavor, Novak stated, “I think this is really big.” N.C. puts education first in new budget By Wendy Kelly The North Carolina General Assembly will open today with a budget plan from Governor Hunt that calls on all members to put education first. Dr. Tom Houlihan, Hunt’s senior educa tion advisor, has been instrumental in Governor Hunt's plans to put education at the forefront in North Carolina. Houlihan can rarely be found at his homeon Second Street in Smitl)field nor in his down town Raleigh office. You may catch him walk ing between meetings with legislators or teach ers and school administraton. if you're lucky, you can spot him in his car on the plione. Houlihan can also be found cheering his son on at a Smithfield-Selma High basketball game when his job does not take him to another meeting out of state. His mission to improve North Carolina’s schools keeps him on the go. Houlihan was Jolinston County’s Supain- tenden t of Schools until he joined Hunt* s team. For Houlihan, education has been a way of life. He knew growing up that teaching was his calling. There was not really one teacher that opened his mind totheidea;tbedesirecameout of instinct. “As a child of the 60’s, I wanted to beof service,” says Houlihan when asked about his career choice. The move from the class room to the administrative aspect of education resulted from his wish to influence more people. Houlihan’s need to help others made the decision easier to take a pay cut, add a 35- minute commute and leave a job he liked to become Hunt’s advisor. At the state level, he hopes to have even more of a positive impact on improving education. When asked about his future in an elected capacity, he asserts that his role is one of a practitioner. “If I had want«j to run for office, I would have done so as state superintendent this year,” he says. He is certain that his present position satisfies his desire to be of service. Houlihan’s chance to be a part of im[X'oving North Carolina’s schools through Hunt’s ag gressive education agenda is coming during the N.C. General Assembly’s long session this year. Smart Start is the governor's plan to have all children ready to learn when they begin school. His agenda includes raising teachers salary to the nationalaverage by the year 2000. Inapress release yesterday from Governor Hunt’s Press Office, heoutlinesabudgetfrian that willexpand Smart Start to all 100 counties and raise stai- See EDUCATION page 9 Single-sex education proved to be benefldal By Emily Futghum At Meredith College, a private women’s college in Raleigh. North Carolina, one of the hottest items in the school store is a T-shirt with the warning: “Better Dead tlian Co-Ed” — and it seems to be the consensus at most women’s colleges across the nation. A feeling of uncer tainty has swept over many of tliose 80 some campuses in the wake of tlie Supreme Court’s decision, led by Justice Ruth Bader Gingsburg, onlering the Virginia Military Institute to be come co-ed. There is good reason for tliese women to fear the futures of their alma maters. This sec ond blow, after the Shannon Faulkner/Citadel incident, could prove to be the beginning of the end of sipgle-sex education in this country. To students at women’s colleges, this is truly cause for alarm as the quality of the education they are receiving is one of the leading factors in the rapid rise of successful professional women today. The battles over VMl and The Citadel have unfolded against a backdrop of rhetoric about the way schools and colleges “shortchange girls”, offering an “ unfair” climate. This is the think ing that has given us the Gender Equality Act, which quietly made its way through the last Congress. Some might ask whether this ^Tecial intervention on behalf of women does more harm than good. Others might ask if they are really necessary as indicators show a trend towards women's colleges in the light of proof that they are leading the tight to provide women an increasingly large place in a man's world. By now, the benefits of single-sex educa tion for women have been reported so often tliat one might think the future of this type of insti tution would be stable. But apparently, statistics showing thatgraduatesof womeii’scollegesare twice as likely as tlieir counterparts at co-ed sdiools to excel in traditionally male-domi- nated fields such as natural sciences, business and govmiment. are not enough proof Women are entering graduate and professional schools in record numbers and when they enter the job See SINGLE-SEX page 10 In this issue: %Student Activities' Emerging Leaders Seminar forunder- cliassmen began last week. Sir * The first in a four-part series: The R»d\ i>r collegc women. Page 4 f The Herald reviews ('hris O'Donnel's "In Love and War" and Kalei^*s Cafe 518 West. Page 12
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