Appalachian State University - Rhododendron Yearbook (Boone, NC)

Page 314 text:

WATAUGA COLLEGE A LIVING LEARNING RESIDENTIAL COLLEGE

Page 313 text:

The speech department has had a dilemma to face. Due to the inconsistency of Boone weather (and other variables), they still don ' t know if they ' ll be in their new building next year. For these extreme optimists, next fall will witness the move, but for the realistic optimists, next spring will be the date. In the meantime, classes must be scheduled in both places, even though the facilities in the new building will be much larger. There will be a learning laboratory with audio-visual devices that will afford the class- room more room. There will also be two TV studios for students to practice in. The speech department includes speech communication, theater, and broadcasting. In all these ' areas, the hands on approach is taken, with emphasis on laboratory and co-curricular work. The broad- casting area has recently devel- oped TV capabilities; the students IFFALA HIAN STATf V 5fFFCH... have Channel 6 for use in student programs, especially news pro- grams. The speech communica- tions area works with other depart- ments on campus trying to meet their communication needs. The major thrust in this area is to provide a proficiency program for teacher certification. For many students from small towns all around the state, there is a lot to be learned about the English langu- age. One can ' t teach speech until some of that Southern drawl has been eliminated. In the theater area, the hands on approach is apparent in the work of the children ' s theater. The readers theater has been active this year also. There are always numerous productions going on; as more and more people are going into theater. Productions directed by Linda Welden, Ed Pilkington and Susan Day have made the Speech Department valuable to the entire campus population. rj ACADEMICS TODAY, May 1976 61

Page 315 text:

Watauga College is a residential, co-educational learning experience with a strong community atmosphere. It offers students the chance to share ideas and experiences outside the classroom as well as within. Watauga College was founded in the fall of 1972 as an experiment in bringing the academic and social lives of students closer together. It evolved in response to the expressed concern over Appalachian State ' s loss of community oriented life style due to its rapid growth. There was genuine concern that people were becoming numbers — that students and faculty might not be able to fraternize outside of the traditional classroom roles; that the curriculum had become so fragmented that a sense of the interrelationship of knowledge was being lost; and that the growth of a total individual was threatened. W.C. ' s curriculum is inter- disciplinary. Students and faculty members regularly meet for classes within the college in A NEW APPROACH TO EDUCATION informal settings to emphasize independent approaches to learning and life, but with the structure most people need to achieve their educational goals. A course of studies in Watauga College is designed to challenge individual abilities and expand a student ' s capacity to solve problems and to communicate ideas and solutions. Learning doesn ' t just stop in the Watauga classroom. There is an active and varied program of social events planned each year that is considered a vital part of Watauga ' s total learning experience. One must live while learning; and Watauga students do a lot of living. A Beer Bust or dance is occasionally held for Watauga College people so that faculty and students can get together in a non-academic atmosphere. Watauga does not think of itself as a static program. It welcomes criticism and encourages students to take the initiative to implement new ideas and directions. No one is required to participate in this activity, but many who have ideas, do so. This is one good reason why Watauga does not wither away from apathy or fall victim to cynicism. r 1