Broward Community College - Silver Sands Yearbook (Fort Lauderdale, FL)

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EULCGY FUR COU I ELOR By DR. JACK D. TAYLOR Dean of Students The Junior College of Broward County ILLUSTRATED BY ALVA FULLER HE little town of Testcor was all agog. After all, wasnt its favorite son retiring from his posi- tion as president of Major Nlotors to return home to live his remaining years in Testcor? To make the celebration more exciting this fam- ous celebrity was scheduled to deliver the Com- mencement address at Testcor High School. As an added incentive H. I. Quotient was rumored to in- clude in his notes some lauditory remarks about the late I. XVill Guide, Testcors illustrious counselor during Dr. Quotients years at the high school. Quotient had always maintained that Mr. Guide had influenced H. I. in his decision to attend college. For this guidance H. I. was thankful. H. I., also, credited Mr. Guide with masterful direction in breaking down H. Ifs twin brother's stubborn detennination to attend college. VVhereas H. I. had resisted all efforts to persaude him to matriculate to the University, L. O. Quotient had doggedly persisted in such an endeavor. Both of these attitudes had remained until Mr. Guide had 6 administered a Stanford-Binet Test to each with overwhelming results of 195 and 95 I.Q.'s for the brothers. Mr. Guide hypothesized that L. O. had suffered brain damage from an accident or high fever. Naturally, the teachers, marks substantiated the standardized test results. NVhen the boys en- rolled in their classes, the teachers buzzed about the differences in abilities. The teachers remarked that Mr. Guideis data gave them more insight on how to deal with each child. Thus, H. I.'s speech was supposed to give the beloved Mr. Guide credit for much of the eminent presidentis success. This success was predicted by Mr. Guide and manifested itself with high marks, participation in extra-curricular activities, and election to the major offices in high school clubs. These hallmarks ex- tended throughout college as H. I. continued to awe professors with his brilliance. Even before H. I. enrolled at Stigma University, he aroused a hubbub with his phenomenal I.Q. With his amazing ability

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espousing of Liberal ideas and methods to get this country mov- ing againf President Kennedy captured the imagination of the students. When he was assassinated in Dallas on that tragic Friday in November, the collegians felt his death very keenly. As flags all across the nation flew at half mast, the American Youth felt as if a close relative had died. Three out of five students queried in a Newsweek pool said that they felt the Kennedy years to have been a special time. Some of them went DOWN WITH 'if HI snail' on to say, he made the young people of today feel that life was worth living, and he was an ideal man for someone of my gen- eration to follow. According to the students, he made politics seem an attractive profession. He returned to it some of its lost honor and added to it his own special style. The Massachusetts statesman appealed to the youth of the nation and was able to com- municate with them as no other American politician had been able to do in a long time. The nation,s youth were attracted to politics because of the style and brilliance of this man. HE second reason is the stu- dents have been encouraged in their turn to the New Left by their college professors. Using such methods as teach-ins. the col- lege professors, who were the radical and left-leaning students of the 1930s Popular Front Nlove- ment, have in some cases, espe- cially in the Berkeley incidents. strongly encouraged political dis- sent and demonstrations. The third reason is the intel- lectual appeal of liberalism. The philosophy of Karl Marx and Fred- erick Engels still attracts some of I Vi, those individuals who reason and weigh everything intellectually. The fourth reason is a form of rebellion against the conservatism of parents. Many of the leaders of the New Left are graduate stu- dents who come from the upper- middle-class homes where politics are conservative. In order to prove their independence, they rebel politically. The final reason is the einer- gence of the other-directed person in the urban centers of the coun- try. In David Riesmans The Lonely Crowd, he defines the model of the other-directed person as a member of society whose typical conformity is insured by his tendency to be very sensitive to the expectations and prefer- ences of others. To this person, the peer group and its opinions are most important. Anxiety is the mode of insuring obedience. Con- formity is primary. The inability of the child to take the roles of his parents as his models forces him to search elsewhere for them. The peer group replaces the par- ents in importance. ln the peer group, he can find acceptance and a meaningful relationship which satisfies his needs. ln acceptance by the peer group he finds his purpose fulfilled. ln effect. in modern society, when he pickets or peacefully re- sists, he is accepted by his peer group. XVhen he does not, he be- comes an outcast. The importance of acceptance by his peer group has been internalized in him by his parents and by society. It be- comes a subconscious but primary necessity. The most ironic aspect of the New Left is that most of these groups have been begun by inner- directed persons. To the inner-di- rected person, his goals and the fulfillment of his goals in the proper manner is the most impor- tant thing. This also has been internalized in the inner-directed man by his parents and by society. Only in this case, the parents play a greater role. He enters politics to protect what he has or to get something he wants. Yet, it is the inner-directed man who is the moralizer. He has a greater con- sciousness of self than the other- individualist. The result is that the inner-directed lead, while the other-directed follow. The movement of the New Left has really just begun. Its success or failure will depend on the yer- dict rendered by this college gen- eration. XVill the future leaders of the United States who are among the college students of today ac- cept and embrace the radical so- cial ideas of the New Left, or will they turn in another direction? The choice is theirs. 5

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and past record, H. I. passed most of his courses with a breeze and, in some instances, he was excused from his final examinations. No question about it-H. I. snowed even the faculty at Stigma. Meanwhile, L. O. acquired a position commen- surate with his I. Q., janitor at dear old Testcor High. Although L. Ofs contributions did not compare to those of H. I., he gained the distinction as the cus- todian of the year in Aptitude County. L. O. looked forward to H. Ifs speech with con- siderable ambivalence. Being the brother of a famous executive brought smiles to L.O.'s faceg however. L. O. always envied his brother's success. To have his brother return to the scene of his own frustrations 1 blended misery and nostalgia to the festive occasion. As H. I. planned his speech, he could not avoid recollections of his successful days at Testcor. Be- cause of his college record and amazing ability, H. I. had bypassed the junior eyccutiye routine in favor of a vice presidency in a small automobile manufac- turing company, the Private Nlotor Company. The years were kind to II. I.. and as the company pros- pered, so did Il. I. Changing its name from Private Xlotor Company to Xlajor Nlotor Company. the enterpriser became a leading producer of cars. II. I. moved from tenth vice president through the ranlts to first vice president and, finally, to president. Of course, marriage to the chief stockliolderls 5. - , 17 1 N . lfl ixl it ny f N 'I 'x ,X s .4 I .Af ', , Q f , , A 1 ' fell' fb Q, ZH 1 A f s' W.-p' yn pp ' . .4 ,- fl, ll, W D l'- ll fl l yy fixgrf . - JMZS, rf I - , F , J r p . , A H A 'iigflg 4 7