University of Notre Dame - Dome Yearbook (Notre Dame, IN)

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ACADEMICS: Development outside the classroom. Two of the most important developments in aca- demics at Notre Dame in 1968 occurred outside the classroom. The birth of both the Free University and the Faculty Senate can lead to remarkable ad- vances in the university ' s academic life, giving greater responsibility to the two most important components of the educational process, the student and the teacher. Started during the first semester, the Free University was successful enough to merit an in- crease in courses offered from six to sixteen, tripling enrollment to 525 students. Cooking and Bar- tending pr oved to be so popular that the waiting list far outnumbered the participants. Four of the courses offered in the first semester were continued in the second semester, including Mr. Peter Michelson ' s media course, which centered on discussions of the current movements within the underground cinema and news media, and a course in mysticism conducted by Professor Ken Lux of the Indiana University Extension department of psychology. The Marxism course offered jointly by Professors Bogle and Soens was a continuation of the contemporary revolutionary theory course offered during the first semester. At meetings held in Professor Bogle ' s home, the discussions centered on the classic Marxist doctrine and its relevance and use by modern revolutionaries. A seminar in recent American radicalism was one of the courses that debuted during the second semester. Under the direction of Lenny Joyce, the discussions followed whatever direction the mem- bers chose, with the concepts underlying such move- ments and leaders as Black Power, the New Left, Malcolm X, C. Wright Mills, and Che Guevara as a basis. Other new courses involved the stock market, an introduction to the market ' s operation offered by a representative of Bache and Co., and contemporary education, an examination of the trends of modern education with an emphasis on the university level, offered by Professor Hassenger. The courses of the Free University were offered without either grades or credit. This fresh approach to education creates a more intimate participation by the individual in his education, placing the responsibility for adequate preparation and partici- pation squarely with the student. The best descrip- tion of the Free University can be found in its catalog for the spring semester. The Free Uni- versity exists to create an atmosphere in which students, by setting up their own courses outside the curriculum, may learn to accept responsibility for gaining the knowledge relevant to their personal 23