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Page 24 text:
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If we don ' t know what the young are thinking about, we don ' t know anything. Margaret Mead Margaret Mead, world renowned anthropologist, graciously spent the fall semester lecturing at the University of Rhode Island. Although generally well received, Dr. Mead was the object of some criticism. Dr. Mead was criticized by some members of the out- side community for her controversial views on con- temporary society. Rare and somewhat erroneously, Dr. Mead was also criticized by members of the col- lege community. Dr. Mead was brought to URI by the Alumni Associa- tion ' s Distinguished Professorship Award to lecture the pre-arranged Sociology course: Cultural Behavior and the Environment. Investigation revealed that Dr. Mead was not satisfied with the course structure or the reading, (not to mention the rented limousine and chauffeur). Students legitimately complained that inf ormal con- tact with Dr. Mead outside the classroom was rare. Most of Dr. Mead ' s free time had been scheduled by her employers for luncheons and public relation ap- pearances. Phillip Leis, Sociology Department Chair- man at Brown, stated the situation quite aptly; Hav- ing her at URI is a stroke of genius . . . Dr. Mead attracted the public attention and interest URI desperately needs. Unfortunately, the students were left with the bitter-sweet taste of what URI could be and what it is today . . .
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Page 23 text:
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I want to offer the 1971 graduating class a message on the theme The Student. My most meaningful learnings about students have come from personal and direct relationships with students as a friend, parent, teacher, and now university president. Accordingly, I find it difficult to make profound generalizations about young people; they are far more unique and individualistic than they are uniform and categorizable. I am sometimes amazed and always sad- dened by the occasionally blatant disregard by some persons of the extreme heterogeneity of students at the Univer- sity of Rhode Island. Students do not talk alike, dress alike, study and play alike any more than do faculty, administra- tors, or other groups of persons in the community at large. It is a rare day when students agree on a single issue; and almost never do all students agree on the same issue at the same time. Consequently, I must also raise my eyebrows when any person, be a student leader or one of the so-called silent majority attempts to speak for students en masse. Our students come from diverse backgrounds. They are individuals apart from any summary characteristics except, perhaps, the commitment to complete certain academic requirements. However, we can speculate on how students in the Class of 1971 are statistically different from students of perhaps ten years ago. As a group, you are differ- ent sociologically in that you represent a broader spectrum of the social and economic structure of the United States. Due to the broadening base of participation in higher education, we have obtained an extremely complex amalgamation of personalities, interests, and abilities in our student population at the University of Rhode Island. Faculty are agreed that the student of today has been exposed to many more experiences and discussions than those of past generations. I have found students to be more worldly and broadly knowledgeable than students of past gen- erations. There have been strong social reasons or pressures for students to attend college since World War II. The goals of these students are not always directed toward intellectual enrichment. Too many students have attended and are at- tending the University because they are sold on the idea they can make more money as a college graduate. I am hopeful that the learning for earning philosophy will become secondary to the goal of intellectual fulfillment. We seem to be experiencing a trend toward higher wages for persons in the technical and specialized labor areas which could help young people increasingly make non-college educational and career decisions. The most obvious change in students has been in the psychological areas of new awarenesses and expectations around the youth culture as separate from the rest of society. It goes without saying that youth and more particularly college-age youth are making distinctive, confronting, and shockingly controversial contributions to our forms of dress, language, and manners of relating and using our leisure. College-age youth seem generally satisfied to create and perpetuate their culture quite apart from what is traditional and acceptable to their parents — of whom I am one. I am often asked why in the world I would want to be a university president under prevailing circumstances. Let me tell you why, in terms of two recent, meaningful experiences with students. The first was a comical greeting card sent anonymously by a group of students during semester break. The students were on a skiing vacation in Vermont and wrote a thinking of you message as they were unwinding and relaxing after a trying Fall semester; that doesn ' t happen often in. a modern American university. Then there was the tiny box of candy left on our doorstep in mid-Feb- ruary by a sorority with a Valentine message for Shirley and me. These are the experiences which cause me to look warmly and enthusiastically toward you and the University of Rhode Island. As students graduating this Spring, you have probably spent much time in both looking back and looking forward. I will not attempt at this point in time to influence your dreams and hopes for the future. I would only hope that you will always look back on your years at the University of Rhode Island as a time when you gained intellectual and moral strength for the long road ahead. Werner A. Baum
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