Those who did not live before
the Revolution will never know how
sweet life is, Talleyrand said. When this year’s senior class
leaves Macalester next week the
link between the new Macalester
and the old will be gone.
When the class of ’72 came
to Mac bearing guitars, stuffed
animals, clothes, and all the things
needed to make their rooms more
homey, they entered an atmosphere
that was different from the
climate at Mac now.
Big campus events were Homecoming,
Snow Week, All-College
formal, and the Daddy Daughter
Dinner Dance.
The new frosh moved into dorms
occupied by members of their
own sex. Women had hours and
grace minutes.
The residents of the women’s
dorms serenaded the men and the
men serenaded the women’s
dorms.
On those occasions when the
sexes were allowed to entertain
each other in their rooms, the
host placed a towel (washrag, necktie)
over the door and a person
on each floor checked to make
sure regulations were properly
enforced.
That was a year of transition.
The required religious “confro’s,”
many required courses and in loco
parentis were eliminated. The
SRFR document was adopted. The
E.E.O. program was conceived and
recruiting began.
Mac was in the first rank in the
changes in American private education.
But the changes had just begun.”
