Miami University - Recensio Yearbook (Oxford, OH)

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Foreign students came to Miami from many plac'es that, to Americans, are scarcely more than points on a map. They came from tiny towns and large Cities; from Brazil, Cuba, Ivory Coast, Kenya, Lebanon and Liberia. From Iraq, Sierra Leone, Vietnam, Taiwan, and the Republic of the Congo. Some of these places had never been looked up in an atlas by American students. Most countries had only one to three representatives on campus, but Japan had seven, Greece six, Iraq five, and Hong Kong, Korea and Nigeria each had four. The United States government encouraged foreign ex-- Change programs through its Institute of International Education. One of the most complete programs was the African Scholarship Program of American Universities. This program sent high-ranking students to the United States by drawing travel money from the home government. tuition fees from the American university of the student's Choice, and maintenance costs from the United States Government Agency for International Development. Many of the foreign students were employed on campus. Some like P. K. Subramanian of India were working toward graduate degrees and taught courses in their major helds. lVIr. Subramanian, for example, taught Math. Others had less scholastic jobs on campus and uptown. Nagib Saliba of Lebanon was a resident assistant at Hepburn Hall. International Club was the most popular activity for Miamias foreign students, but, in 1964, other organizations composed of students from regions sharing similar cultures began to spring into existence. The two largest groups were the Arab Students Union and the African Students Union. These Clubs sponsored parties, speakers and suppers. Students came to the United States both to partake of our culture and to share theirs with us. They tried to absorb as much as they could of the American way of life without losing their national identity, and what usually resulted was a third cultureea new individuality peculiar to that student. Such organizations as People to People and International Club attempted to draw students together on more significant levels than could ever have been achieved at mere teas and dinners. Perhaps symbolic of this mixing of cultures was Miss Deepa Biswasl regular campus outfit - a Miami sweatshirt under her delicate silk sari. The seniors, both American and foreign students, had to be pretty certain of what they wanted to do, and 38 per cent of the graduating Class went on to graduate school. Of this group, 64 had graduate assistantships, 24 had fel- lowships, and 21 were awarded scholarships. The largest number of students did their graduate work in education, but law, English and business were also popular fields. To prove that Miami life agreed with them, ninety of the 406 students who went on to do further study stayed right where they were. Of course the first few weeks of a term were a big adjust- ment, but Miami students were supposedly well-prepared. All entering freshmen were required to take the ACT tAmeriean College Testing Programl tests. The national norm on these tests was the fiftieth percentile, but the ciaveragei, Miami student placed in the sixty-eighth per- centileean eighteen-plaee advantage. However, this didnit have much effect on the Thveragell studentls uncertainty about what held to major in. As usual, over one-half of the freshman Class ended up Changing their majors. That many Changed their major was no surprise, considering the diver- sified interests of the student body. That many Chose to continue their work through graduate school was also no surprise, because undergraduate training was only a be- ginning in the studentis struggle for understanding. ZI

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STUDEN T BODY A clean white envelope with Miami University written in red gothic lettering lying on the table and a shaky hand to open it. Then suddenly, the words popped out of the evenly typed page-11We are pleased to inform you . . . W ho ever bothered to read the rest? Nothing mattered except that someone, not just anyone, had been accepted to Miami University. In 1964 when someone really did enter Miami as a fresh- man, he was one of approximately 1500 chosen out of 4,000 applicants. Applications from out of state were judged on the basis of the applicantls academic achieve- ment4high school grades and college board scores. But the in-staters, who always composed hve-sixths of every fresh- man class, had to worry mainly about applying on time. To the average high school senior, the thought of sending for applications, waiting for them to come, hlling them out and getting a health exam out of the way4all before 1000 other people did so-brought on near hysteria. How many future Miamians ended up being innoculated against polio, flu, diphtheria and small pox all on the same afternoon in the same arm? Consequently, in 1964 a new procedure was announced. From that time on, a speciHc due-date for Ohio men and women applicants would be established. Under this program, early and late applicants would be given equal consideration. Priority was to be given to those stu- dents with scholastic rank in the upper half of their senior class. Possibly in the future the panic would be less, but in 1964 it was definitely still there. It grew as the fall prog- ressed, and the rumor was passed around schools in the area 4- Miami 5 filled up alreadyll, I he one- s-ixth of 196415 freshman class which hailed from outside Ohio represented 42 states, the District of Colum- bia, 43 foreign nations and the Canal Zone. The five states which claimed the biggest share of these students were New York, Illinois, Pennsylvania, New Jersey and Michi- gan. Double trauma4not only did these students have to meet new people and try new things, they also had to learn new accents. The surest way to tell a freshman was to ask him where he was going, then listen to see whether he said 1gdowntownll or 1gupil. A wrong reply brought 11Heyg kid, I donit care what you do in Chicago-we go uptown in Oxforle And there were other things too. Before the end of the first month girls from New York somehow managed to accept the idea that at Miami bigr purses were completely out. 20 However, at least 85 of Miamils students may have had slightly more dramatic problems to cope with in 1964. These were the students who came, mostly on scholarships and govermnent or private grants, from 43 countries around the world. They were part of what Miamians had con- sidered a tradition since 1872-the foreign exchange program. These students came for many reasons, some because they chose Miami, others because they were placed there by the State Department. In fact, some had scarcely heard of this school before the bus let them off in Oxford. These exchange students represented a trend which was gaining momentum throughout the United States. Mr. Donald Nelson, Foreign Student Advisor, estimated that by 1970, one hundred thousand foreign students would be studying at various universities in the United States. And Miami had its place in all of this. 111 only wish the number of exchange students at Miami would grow along with the total number of such students in the United States,,, Mr. Nelson commented.

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ACADEMICS Four years of college represented a huge step to the in- coming freshmen. Suddenly arriving at Miami for sUmmer registration, they were faced with the bewildering choice of courses that offered everything from archaeology to zoology. Even the common curriculum courses stated at least three different choices. The average Miami freshman entering college last semester took his place in the ranks of the class of 1968. He had scored in the 68th percentile of the American Col- lege Testing Program tests required of all Miami students. Dr. Robert Brown, director of the Student Counseling Service, reported that, iithis is well above the national norm of the 50th percentile on these tests? So the well-above-average, average Miamian arrived in Oxford and attended the first in a series of meetings to decide on his courses for his first year of college. The freshman who planned to major in a held in the College of Arts and Sciences found group requirements almost as numerous as the common curriculum. Language requirements for the A8LS major meant four- teen hours of a language, including the second year. Lan- guages offered for this requirement were Latin, French, Spanish, German, Portuguese, Italian, and for the really ambitious, Chinese, available for the first time in 1964-. Included was East Asian literature, also begun during this past year. 2.7.. PrOSpective government majors could look forward to their senior year. Dr. James Woodworth, Acting Depart- ment Chairman, added a new seminar for advanced stu- dents. The informal seminar, which met at Dr. Woodworthls home, offered studies in all phases of govern- ment and politics for those who managed to last four years in this department. Students majoring in the biological sciences were not forgotten this year, as anyone who had classes in Upham could attest. Ground was broken for the new wing to famous Upham Arch and the new laboratories being con- structed were scheduled for completion in time for classes in September 1965. Not everyone in the freshman Class was enrolled in the College of Arts and Sciences, however, and the other schools at Miami offered varied programs. Applied Science students spent a good deal of their time in Gaskill Hall putting in hours finishing lab work or sales-service Charts. The women in Hanna House were also part of Applied Science, but their late hours were tilled with other things. Home Economics majors lived in this new building on Spring St. which was both a classroom and a residence hall. The kitchen was always in use as the women put into practical application what they had learned. The second floor was covered with bolts of cloth, as the latest in home decorating became the decor of Hanna House.