Haverford College - Record Yearbook (Haverford, PA)

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love for art, literature, music and history is evi- denced by his extensive and profound knowledge of these domains, and the enthusiasm with which he evokes them. In the diversity of his talents, in his sensitive approach to art, and in his amusing philosophic SAVOIR VIVRE, Aldo Caselli is a Renaissance man PAR EXCELLENCE. It is rare that a non-professional interest in art will result in scholarly investigation, but this is the essence of Mr. Caselli appreciation. One corner of his living room is piled with books of the to be read and studied category: this pile is in a constant state of flux. The remarkable gamut of subjects and languages is an indication of the breadth of his studies. He is extremely competent in discerning the general from the particular. This talent is put to good use in his approach to the humanities, which spans the boundaries of lan- guage and form in an attempt to examine the similarities and differences of artistic creations i n their historical context. He has a list of publications that is extra- ordinary in size and scope for a business adminis- trator. During the years he lived in Egypt (1933- 38) he was deeply impressed by the wealth and delicateness of Islamic culture. He learned to read and speak Arabic, and furthered his previous knowledge of Islam, its history and its influence on European development. He has translated a book on the topic from Italian into English, and prior to 1938 wrote over 40 articles on Islam for Italian newspapers, magazines, and journals. Mr. Caselli is also a literary critic and writes articles for some of the leading American journals ; his latest review is in CRITIQUE (Fall, 1963), on S. Pacifici ' s GUIDE TO ITALIAN LITERATURE. He is a student of aesthetic theory and is espe- cially interested in Croce and Ruskin. His rela- tionship with Italian literature is intimate. Dante, of course, is one of his great favorites ; when dis- cussing a problem, he can immediately produce from memory an appropriate passage from THE DIVINE COMEDY. The warmth and understand- ing with which he reads poetry is indicative of his deep love for the beauty of his native language. His appreciation of the French language is almost as great. It is natural that he should admire Cha- teaubriand, who so well understood the magnetism of Italy. Mr. Caselli ' s familiarity with European art is no less thorough. It is astounding with what detail he can describe developments in painting and the connections between literary and artistic move- ments. But it is perhaps his knowledge of music and, in particular, of opera that is best known at Haverford. His courses concentrate on the bio- graphical details of the composers and librettists as well as on the operas themselves. In this way he dramatizes the important relationship between a society and the operas it produces. He has just completed a cross-reference dictionary of opera which will be published in Italy this year. His first-hand experience in the organization and operation of institutions of higher learning in both Italy and America has produced several informative studies. One appeared in 1960 under the auspices of the Istituto Italiano di Cultura and the Catherwood Foundation, and another will be published by the University of Wisconsin Press. As for the future. Mr. Caselli is contemplating a study of Samuel Morse, who not only invented the Morse code and the electric telegraph, but was a painter as well. Mr. Caselli ' s philosophy of life nicely comple- ments his humanistic endeavors. His is a world of culture and refinements ; his interest in the human- ities is highly personal. Although not his career, they are his first love. He indulges in art, music, poetry and history for pleasure ; they have become an essential part of him. And he writes about his interests with the same passion with which he teaches or discusses them. He is not pedantic or pretentions, but original and unassuming. More- over, he enjoys arguing and is always ready to consider new ideas and new approaches to prob- lems. In commenting on life in the United States or, more particularly, at Haverford, his wit and pragmatic cynicism are strongly colored by his sincerely humane Latin spirit. He is a keen critic of Haverford, but he also loves it very much. Such a man is a wonderful asset in our community. It is unfortunate for us that our view of Aldo Caselli is so tainted with the narrow-minded criticisms often levelled against him. Jonathan P. Kabat 11

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Until last year there was no question who was the most unpopular figure in the Haverford com- munity. Almost any student would have nominated Aldo Caselli for that distinction. If this role has now been usurped by a more appropriate candidate, Mr. Caselli unfortunately still runs a close second. Disliked by many students and feared by all, he is resented primarily for the seemingly unreasonable decisions that issue from his office and reflect his absolute power over matters financial. Over the years this refentment has fostered an unwarranted view of Mr. Caselli : he is thought of as an inscrut- able alien who commands maliciously from on high. This legenary monarch of Whitall is supposedly a living exponent of injustice and tyranny, as the name he is sometimes dubbed reflects : IL DUCE. Few are willing, in the adamant self-righteousness of petty complaining, to grant that there may be more to Aldo Caselli than their prejudices admit. In his administrative capacity Mr. Caselli has the thankless task of controlling the financial operation of the College. Any project involving money, whether it emerges from the table of the Board of Managers, from a student organization, or from any other source, must pass through the Comptroller ' s hands, where it is pragmatically evaluated in terms of the financial state of the College. Given Haverford ' s chronic financial di- lemma, it is imperative that plans be cut and channeled to conform to the practical situation. Mr. Caselli does precisely that, in true European style. He has managed to run this college on a proverbial shoestring, shunning the principles en- shrined in the American committee system : low efficiency and high waste. With such a centralized system it is axiomatic that various factions will be dissatisfied. But t is equally undisputed that the business world is characterized by a perpetual cut-throat struggle for success or at least for sur- vival. It is Mr. Caselli who mediates between this world and our quasiutopia, and we fare quite well by him. But the nature of his job, due in part to the Administration ' s impressive talent for fund- raising, and in part to the incessant destruction of College property by unidentified students, de- mands that internal financial policy be conducted with the same standards of stringency. It is easy to see how people who are not acquainted with such methods will be offended by their impersonal coldness. Yet Mr. Caselli is hardly misanthropic; the spontaneous warmth of his Mediterranean spirit is obvious to all who know him. The accusation that he dislikes students is not only incorrect, but quite irrelevant to any criticism of him ; our new Dean of Students thinks himself the friend and perhaps the father of all students . . . Mr. Caselli certainly expects a lot of the stu- dents. As Comptroller he invariably sees all the adverse and for the most part immature mani- festations of their character. When constantly confronted with expensive repairs due to destruc- tion of College property and nobody willing to stand up and assume the responsibility, he has little choice but to blame the entire group. This is heartily resented by innocent and guilty alike. In this light it is not too difficult to conceive why Mr. Caselli thinks the students are immature. But of course, he belongs to an unenlightened generation of bourgeois ethical principles and can- not be expected to understand that to throw food or destroy property is not to signal immaturity, but only to exercise inalienable rights, manifesta- tions of freedom and individualism, which have nothing to do with intellectual character. What is more, he adheres to the taboo belief that each individual is a member of society and must there- fore conform to certain standards of decorum and assume responsibility for his behavior. If Mr. Caselli is critical of student shortcom- ings, he is equally cognizant of academic merit. Because of his administrative position, he does not often come in contact with students on an intellectual level, but if sought out, he is exceed- ingly happy to share his knowledge. Those who have attended the Italian Opera courses in the Arts and Services program are well aware that Mr. Caselli is more than a college administrator. Few people realize that our Comptroller is a prolific and enthusiastic contributor to the intel- lectual productivity of Haverford. Mr. Caselli has an innate passion for teaching and discussing his culture that can only be understood if one realizes his personal commitment to the humanities. His 10

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A Report to the Class o f 1964 on Haverford Today and Tomorrow I greatly appreciate this opportunity given me by the editors of the RECORD to set forth my views on some aspects of the future of the College. As members of the graduating class you are familiar from your own personal experiences with the Haverford of the present. Many of you, as well as Haverfordians as a whole, are wondering what effect our plans for enlargement may have on the Haverford of the future. Before indicating some of the aims and trends of the Haverford of tomorrow let us look at some of the significant developments during the past four year period, which coincides with the undergraduate life of most of you. In the first place, just prior to your arrival as freshman in September 1960, the Board of Managers had made three basic decisions concern- ing the improvement of the College ' s facilities. These were the construction of a new, modern building to house the Chemistry, Mathematics and Physics Departments, the renovation of Sharpless Hall to accommodate the Biology and Psychology Departments and the building of a new dormitory for 130 students to relieve overcrowding and per- mit a modest expansion of the student body. Un- fortunately for your class, you have had the use of Stokes Hall for only your senior year, while Sharpless ' renovation and the construction of the dormitory have merely been inconveniences. Other physical changes which took place nearly three years ago and from which you have derived more satisfaction were the opening of the Henry S. Drinker Music Center and the Computing Center in Hilles Hall and the laying of a new, dry brick walk in front of Founders! Important personnel and educational changes also took place during the same four year period. To note some of these which you may have taken for granted, when Professor Craig Thompson was appointed new librarian, it was expected that he would spend most of his time on the Library rather than very limited periods, as had been the case previously. The Department of Biblical Litera- ture was changed to the Department of Religion, reflecting the broader new interest of the College in that important field. The hiatus in offerings in religious thought resulting from the imminent retirement of Professor Douglas Steere will be filled by an additional appointment in the Depart- ment of Religion, and the Philosophy Department now has three full-time philosophers. 1961, with the appointment of a third man in the Psychology Department, the College was able to offer courses in the three chief areas of social psychology, experimental psychology and in per- sonality. A full-time American historian was added to the History Department. These personnel changes, as well as others, have added breadth and strength to the College ' s offerings. Constant curricular changes have added strength to the educational program. Other significant changes, which ostensibly appear disconnected but are likely to have a lasting impact on the College, are the increasingly numer- ous and important foreign contacts of faculty and administration. Philip Bell ' s teaching at Makerere and Professor Hare ' s appointment at the Univer- sity of Ibadan, Nigeria, may result in arrangements whereby our students may study or teach at these universities. Dr. Archibald Macintosh ' s leading role in the African Scholarship Program of American Universities has resulted in our student body ' s being enriched by African students. The Three- College faculty seminar and undergraduate course on China and India have aroused interest in non- Western studies. The two most important developments in the past year, however, particularly in terms of the changes these will bring about, were the approval by the Board of Managers of the policy on Expan- sion of the College and on Aims and Objectives of the College. As members of the Class of 1964, you are fully aware that the question of increase in the size of the student body has been discussed during your entire college life. You are also aware of the fact that the Board agreed in January 1963 that the College should look toward an increase of approximately 50 °o to about 700 students in ten years. During your four years in College, the stu- dent body has remained relatively stable. In your freshman year, total undergraduate enrollment in the fall was 466. With the planned increase in enrollment next fall for a total of 500, it is natural to wonder what effect this and continued expan- sion will have on the future of the College. A fact often overlooked is that in the prelim- inary and prolonged discussions on the question of expansion, it became apparent to the faculty, the administration and the Board that planned growth of the College would result in a better College in the future. In the first place, numerical growth of the College would enable the smaller departments to increase the number of their facul- ty members. From the of view of the educa- tional standards of the College, much would be gained by having more than one or two members in a department. There would obviously be far less disruption in the teaching schedule when a professor is absent on sabbatic leave in a depart- 12