Austin Peay State University - Yearbook (Clarksville, TN)

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32 wraps uphis first 19 months at The Peay By Lynn Keeton After an interview with President Robert Riggs, you get the undeniable feeling that Austin Peay is in very capa- ble and willing hands. Riggs, although having been here for little over a year-and-a-half, seems to view his changes in a positive manner, especially in the area of academic af- fairs. When questioned about his aca- demic improvements, President Riggs cited cheoutstanding faculty as one of the reasons why academic improve- ments came so easily to Austin Peay. While the Houtstanding faculty is definitely a plus here at The Peay, it also seems evident that Riggs himself is doing something right. This is easy to admit when one real- izes that of all the schools of higher education in Tennessee, only two ex- perienced enrollment increases in the fall of 1976; Austin Peay was one of the two. Actually, Austin Peay's headcount went up 11 per cent, five-and-a-half per cent of this is attributed to fulltime stu- dents and the other five-and-a- half per cent is due to an increase in the num- ber of students taking classes at Eagle University, which is partially sponsored by Austin Peay. Although the number of students has risen significantly over that of last year, Austin Peay has still been able to main- tain its present ratio of 20 students to one teacher. And this, according to Riggs, is a very fine studenUteacher ratio. Yet, amid all the talk of cutbacks and tightening the budget, there have been several new faculty members added this year. When the President was questioned on this matter, he stated that it was due to the cutbacks and reorganization of the administrative

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Top nght And Bottom nght - The Chamber singers provided a musical program during the Dunn Center dedication. Above - -40 Joel Plummer, State Safety Commissioner; Winfield Dunn and President Riggs wait outside the Dunn Center for the beginning of the dedi- cation ceremony.

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area that made it possible to continue to upgrade Austin Peay academically. The social atmosphere on campus has also improved under Riggs' admin- istration, with the majority of improve- ments being made in the area of intra- mural recreation. Riggs felt that the hiring of a full-time intramural director, Bob Neilson, was the major plus in the up-grading of intramural recreation. This attributed to the fact that Neilson now has more time to plan and impro- vise new areas of recreation. Plans for the construction of new tennis courts and soccer goals and nets for the program were also imple- mented during the 1976-77 year. Riggs indicated that he is pleased with the fraternity and sorority system at APSU, which he feels adds a needed dimension to the social atmopshere of Austin Peay. The Greek system on campus has proved to be such an asset to Austin Peay that the administration has gone as far as helping to improve the appearances of fraternity houses. The reasoning behind the help given the Greek system is obvious; the more active students tend to find their stay at Austin Peay happier. The Wednesday night movies are an- other example of the administration's effort to try to keep students socially involved on campus. The movie nights, sponsored by the University Social Activities Board on campus, have been termed a success, probably due to the good quality of films presented, plus the fact the mov- ies tend to break the monotony of the school week. Yet, as far as Austin Peay has pro- gressed socially, Riggs still feels that one major area of campus life has been overlooked . . . dorm life. The 34-year- oid president commented Dormitory life should be the focal point of social activities on campus, sponsoring such activities as dances, intramural teams, dinners, etc. Right - While some people don't take basketball games seriously, George Fisher, President Riggs and Doug Vance can't be included in that group. Top Right - The re- roofing of the Alpha Tau Omega Fraternity House was just one of the summer projects that Riggs had planned for campus betterment.