the Mars Hill College
HiUrop
24 September 1966
MARS HILL N. C.
VoL XLL No. 1-A
BSU Plans
Busy Year
This year’s BSU has embarked
upon an ambitious program for
the remainder of the year. This
10-point program has been de
signed to aid Mars Hill students
as they aid others.
BSU will first of all have regu
lar monthly meetings. These
meetings will be open to any in
terested persons. Food, fun, and
information will be provided.
BSU will actively participate in
a Listen (Love impels sacrifice
toward every need) Fund Project.
The project is a worthy one.
£>ght N. C. Baptist students will
sent to Brazil to work with
people there during the summer
(1967) provided the various N.
C. BSU’s raise enough money.
Since this work is a much needed
°Oe and also since a Mars Hill
*tudent will have the opportunity
af applying for appointment to
this service, there will be a year-
long drive on campus to raise
enough money to send these eight
•tudents.
The N. C. BSU fall convention
^ill be attended 5-7 Nov. at Win-
ston Salem, N. C., on the Wake
forest College campus. The
I'heme will be “Faith and Learn
ing.’’
Fourth, the N. C. BSU Inter
national Student Retreat (es
pecially for foreign students) will
no held during Thanksgiving holi-
jiays at Montreat-Anderson Col-
®6e in Montreat.
Fifth, BSU will conduct semi-
P®rs, debates, and discussions con-
®®nning current issues and social
Concerns. Campus-wide studies
''^ill be made. Opportunities such
the Christian Citizenship Semi-
Pnr at New York City and the
®®niinar at the Koinonia Farm
be publicized,
active minion program in
'nrrounding areas will be a sixth
mt of the program. The Black
Poi
M,
. °n»tain Tuberculosis Sanitor-
Oteen hospital, and Mt.
and Cain River churches,
^*^1 be visited. There is also a
•*«hility of a touring drama
***>».
cha
Peri
Seventh, BSU will assist in
Pel services (BSU choir), ves-
dorm devotions, bull ses-
and retreats to Ridgecrest
^Ptist Assembly.
Fighth, BSU plans exchange
°8Tams with BSU’s at nearby
°**eges.
social events are plan-
eurf to stimulate relationships
^ to have a good time. Also,
tel creating more personal
^tionships will be tried,
fe and last is the biggest
tji*P°®*lhility of the BSU. It is
5^^ sponsoring Christian Fo-
5^* ^eek. Concerning this issue
5^^®* the announcement of re-
^ appointed leaders for this
* (ocus week. Art Earp and
Cansler have accepted
f Positions of co-chairmen.
“ members named thus far
®“1 Lancaster, Howard Rees,
Elmer West
**>Sy”* Mars Hill Baptist Church
•erve as co-ordinator.
What’s this, the first victim of Rat Week? Looks like a
campus low-budget funeral, but for some reason the mourners
don’t look too mournful. (See story. Page 2.)
Proiected Development
Emphasizes Excellence
A ten-year improvement pro
gram will be launched 1 October
by Dr. Bentley. A total concept
of this program is the full realiza
tion of a professional faculty and
a mature student body. The pro
gram will seek educational excel
lence with a professional faculty
and a mature student body.
The first point of the program
is faculty development. By 1972,
50 per cent of our faculty should
have their doctoral degrees. Sev
eral measures have been planned
to give the teachers fringe bene
fits and to attract new doctor
ates.
A retirement system was inaug
urated under Dr. Blackwell’s ad
ministration. A faculty or staff
member invests 5 percent of his
salary and the college matches
this amount. The money is in
vested through a national organi
zation, the Teachers Insurance
and Annunity Association.
Dr. Bentley proposed a plan,
approved by the trustees, in
which the children of faculty and
staff members may attend the
college tuition free.
Curricular development is the
second point in the program. De
partments of psychology, philoso
phy, and sociology will be cre
ated. The departments of the
sciences and of other fields will
be expanded.
The third part of the program
concerns buildings. In the near
Greek Groups Galloping
Activity is the note as the year
begins for Mars Hill’s social serv
ice clubs which serve the Mars
Hill College and surrounding com
munity.
Sigma Alpha Chi
Already Sigma Alpha Chi has
completed several projects. The
girls of this organization have
helped freshmen girls move into
the dorms, assisted in the Miss
America pageant and faculty tea,
held an overnight retreat, and
entertained a German visitor of
the Gorskis.
Several members were inducted
during last spring. These girls are
Mary Shephard, Mary Marsha
Taylor, Kitty Haigh, and Sylvia
Gore.
New officers of the club are
Katy Cathey, president; Janis
Elam, vice-president; Sharon
Proctor and Brenda Smith, sec
retaries; and Barbara Brown,
treasurer.
Delta Phi Zeta
The newest girl’s social service
club Delta Phi Zeta which was
formed last spring is looking for
ward to a busy year.
Members of the club have
worked with this year’s BSU re
treat and have had a coke party
for the freshmen girls. A break
fast and cookout have also been
held.
Judy Hill, Judy Burgess, and
Sally Spalding are newly elected
members of the club.
Officers for the club are
(Continued p. 2, coL 8)
Self-Study Leads
Toward Accreditation
future ground will be broken for
the Blackwell Building. The five-
story, $2 million structure will be
located on the present site of the
Montague Building and the Of
fice Building. The building will
house a language laboratory, a
data processing center, a 500-seat
lecture hall, classrooms, adminis
trative offices, and a printing
area with the college’s own print
ing equipment. In two years, con
struction of a new men’s dormi
tory should begin.
The old gym is to be renovated
to make a student center. For
the first time this year, the facul
ty has a faculty lounge, which is
located in the Memorial Library
basement. This was made pos
sible by the efforts of B. H. Til-
son, superintendent of buildings
and grounds.
There has also been a reorgani
zation in the administration.
Prior to this year, 14 administra
tors have been responsible to the
president. Now only five are re
sponsible to him for the major
aspects of college life. These
people are (1) Dean Lee, in
charge of academics, (2) Dean
Lynch, in charge of students, (3)
Walter Smith, in charge of pub
lic information, (4) Robert Chap
man, in charge of educational
services. No one has yet been
named to fulfill the position of
business manager.
A 250-page report of a year
long self-study of Mars Hill Col
lege was delivered last week to
the Southern Association of Col
leges and Schools in Atlanta, Ga.
The volume, which was edited
by John A. McLeod of the Eng
lish Department, is the first for
mal step toward full accreditation
for Mars Hill as a liberal arts
senior college.
Six faculty committees con
ducted the nine-part study. Areas
studied were the academic pro
gram, library facilities, fiscal
operation, student activities,
physical facilities, college pur
poses and philosophy, among
others.
The college at present does not
fulfill all requirements. Two ma
jor problems are the lack of books
in the library and an insufficient
number of faculty members with
doctoral degrees.
The college does, however, ex
pect to meet the standards set
by the Southern Association of
Schools and Colleges by the be
ginning of school next year.
Rule Explained
Dr. Fred Bentley clarified a
new college regulation concerning
drinking last week.
Dr. Bentley feels that the Stu
dent Handbook most clearly spells
out college policy concerning this
matter. As found on Page 35 it
reads: “Drinking. Possession or
use of alcoholic beverage on cam
pus or at college-sponsored events
is forbidden. Any violation will
lead to immediate suspension
from school.”
Mars Hill College shall enforce
this regulation vigorously. Stu
dents failing to comply shall ab
solutely be dismissed, he said.
This differs from regulations
in previous years in that it does
allow off-campus drinking with
out penalty. However, Bentley
emphasized that this does not
mean that Mars Hill College sanc
tions drinking on-campus, off-
campus, or anywhere.
The new regulation was made
because the college feels that it
has no right to infringe upon the
rights of an off-campus student
who must of necessity be classi
fied a private citizen.
Dr. Bentley has said that he
hopes that Mars Hill students will
not abuse this rule. Any student
on campus must conduct himself
without infringing upon the
rights of others. Drunkenness or
rowdiness on campus will not be
tolerated.
Furthermore, Dr. Bentley cau
tions any students who are less
than 18 years old that a North
Carolina state law prohibits
minors from drinking anywhere
within the state.
With this rule clarified there
will be no excuse for any Mars
Hill student who disobeys this
rule or makes himself a nuisance
to others, he added.
A second major step toward
accreditation will take place next
month when Dr. Fred Bentley
and Dean R. M. Lee go to At
lanta, where they will review the
report with a screening commit
tee.
Assuming that the Southern
Association regards the report
favorably, a third step will be in
order. A visiting committee will
come to the Mars Hill campus
this spring and thoroughly exam
ine every aspect of student, fac
ulty, and administrative activities.
An affirmative report from the
visiting committee will provide
for the last and most important
step toward accreditation.
This final step will take place
some time during the fall semes
ter in 1967. The Southern As
sociation of Schools and Colleges
will formally vote either to ac
cept or reject Mars Hill College
for accreditation to the Southern
Association of Schools and Col
leges.
Mr. McLeod, when asked about
the possibility of the college’s ac
ceptance to the Southern Associ
ation, replied that the outlook is
very good and no problems are
anticipated at the moment.
Both faculty and administra
tion are confident that the class
of ’68 will graduate from a fully
accredited senior college.
Summer Theater
Seen for Drama
Plans for a summer theater to
be initiated 'here at Mars Hill
College have been announced by
the Drama Department. The six-
week theater will begin with the
first session of the 1967 summer
school.
The theater, under the direc
tion of Mr. James Thomas, will
operate as a stock company pre
senting three productions during
the six-week period. It will be
open to advanced high school stu
dents, who will receive one high
school unit of credit, regular col
lege students, and high school
teachers wishing to renew their
certificates. The latter two
groups will receive six hours
credit.
Residence for any high school
students participating will be pro
vided in the college dormitories.
The company is expected to con
sist of 20 to 30 players.
Mr. Thomas will be assisted by
one other faculty member and
two students. The plays will be
presented in either the Owen
Building or an arena theater in
the round constructed in Moore
Auditorium.
The purposes of such a theater
are to promote the growth of the
Drama Department, to provide
entertainment for Mars Hill Col
lege students and people in the
surrounding area, and to promote
public relations of Mars Hill Col
lege.