Northeastern University - Cauldron Yearbook (Boston, MA)

Page 25 text:

During the thirties freshmen were forced to wear a small black and red ;ap, denoting their inferior status in the eyes of upperclassmen. Most reshmen, being innocent creatures, faithfully wore the caps, but there vere always a few troublemakers who would rise the wrath of sophomores ather then wear a beanie. If detected, the offender would be summoned before a student court ind usually ordered to scrape the gum off of various staircases. The 3unishment was rarely served because no sophomore was interested ;nough to waste his time supervising the culprit. non-academic high point at Northeastern was the annual freshman- ;ophomore rush, launcned in 1919. On a designated day freshmen and sophomores met in combat on the Fenway. The activity was climaxed by a 3ole rush, with one class gathered round a 12-foot greased pole, on top of vhich flew the class colors. The other class had to try and storm the pole ind reach the colors. The Rush continued until 1932 when the Student Council voted to abandon it because it had outlived its usefulness. The increasing size of the classes involved and the increasing number of abrasions, contusions and other mishaps, and the increasing tendency of both classes to relieve at least a few of their opponents of their clothing, played a part in the Council ' s decision. Freshmen no longer have to wear beanies or climb up a greased pole, but the first year of college does have its trials and moments of initiation as lowly freshmen begin their ascent to tne top of the mountain that holds the reward and glory of being a senior. Just as being a student has changed over the past 84 years, people change too. The person who walks into Northeastern as a freshman is never the same as the person who leaves it half a decade later.

Page 24 text:

Northeastern fifty years ago Remember the things about Northeastern that struck you as a fresh- man, the seemingly Impersonal nature of a large urban institution, the cost of tuition and the realization that your first co-op job probably wouldn ' t make you a millionaire. Well Northeastern wasn ' t always the institution it is today. Try to imagine what if would have been like in the early days of this century. In 1900, when Northeastern was just the Evening Institute for Young Men of the Boston YMCA, tuition was only $5 a year and that included a YMCA membership. Twelve years later tuition had risen to the astronomi- cal price of $100 a year, still including the YMCA membership. Rooms at the Y were available at a cost of from $3.50 to $5 per week. Co-op began at Northeastern in 1909, three years after it had been developed at the University of Cincinnati (no, Northeastern didn ' t invent co-op, they ' d just like you to think they did). The first companies to participate were the Boston and Maine Railroad, the Boston Consolidated Gas Company and the Boston Elevated Railway Company. Eight students were enrolled in the program the first year. Students earned from $5 to $6 a week on a pay scale of 10 cents per hour the first year. In their fourth year students could earn up to 16 cents per hour. Going to college in the early twentieth century was a little different than it is today. A typical school day in 1914 began at 9 a.m. and ended at 2:30 p.m. with a 30 minute lunch break. Students were not permitted to leave the building without permission except at lunchtime. A close check was made on student abscences. The university enforced a no cut system. Students who were failing courses were warned, chased down and re- quired to report to the department for extra help. In the thirties consumption of alcoholic beverages was almost a sin. Drinking at university functions was once grounds for severe disciplinary action. Rules of conduct were set by the administration, with no input from faculty or students.

Page 26 text:

The Year No more war With a simple gesture ttiat attracted world-wide attention both for its historic significance and bold- ness an Egyptian leader met with an Israeli leader in Israel for the first time since 1948. Egypt ' s President Anwar Sadat flew to Israel on Nov, 19, 1977 to try to work out a peace agreement with Israel ' s leader tvlenachem Begin, It was a move that would alter the lives, of both men as well as shake-up an already troubled tvliddle East region. Pledging no more war between the two nations that had been fighting for three decades, Sadat and Begin would become central figures in peace talks that would last nearly two years. After setting the stage with his flight to Jerusalem, Sadat was praised by Begin for accomplishing a great moral achievement. President Jimmy Cart- er ' s administration became a mediating factor in the negotiations and devoted a large part of its foreign policy to achieving total peace in the Mi66 e East. A formal conference was set for Dec. 14 of that year between the governments of Egypt and Israel in Cairo. But talks were stymied on Christmas Day. Although Israel agreed to withdraw its settlements in Egyptian territory, its Parliament backed off when Sadat demanded that an independent Palestinian state be set up on the Jordan River ' s West Bank. Despite continued efforts on both sides to arrive at some agreements, negotiation seemed to reach an impass. Stating that Israel was seeking land, not peace, Sadat summoned his delegation, which was in Jerusalem, to return to Egypt on Jan. 18, 1978. The signing of a formal peace agreement appeared hopeless. Sadat, meanwhile, was drawing political fire from fellow Arab states. He severed diplomatic ties with Syria, Iraq, Libya, Algeria and South Yemen. He also closed some Soviet cultural centers and consul- ates in Egypt after deciding that Soviet presence was hindering the peace efforts. Now It ' s Perfectly Clear One year after being intervlevi ed by David Frost and saying, I gave them a sword, For- mer President Richard Nixon re-emerged on the national scene vi ith memoirs of his political career. The book, published in two volumes, re- ceived mixed reviews but, as expected, be- came a bestseller. Newspapers began pub- lishing excerpts in April of 1978. In discussing his decision to become the only American President to resign from office, Nixon said, I told myself that I had not been involved in the things that gave (H.R. Halde- man and John Eriichman) potential criminal vulnerability. But there were things I had known. The difference between us was that Halde- man and Eriichman had been trapped . . .; so far I was not. I was faced with having to fire my friends for things I myself was part of. Other Arab nations and the Palestinian Liberation Organization led a boycott of products manufac- tured by Egyptian companies. But continued urging from the Carter Administra- tion through letters and visits to the two nations by Secretary of State Cyrus Vance and Vice President Walter Mondale managed to keep communication between Israel and Egypt alive. In August of 1978, the White House announced that Sadat, Begin and Carter would meet Sept. 5 at Camp David for peace talks with the United States taking the position as a full partner in the negotia- tions. Bert Lance resigns President Carter ' s Administration took its first major political stabbing Sept. 21, 1977 when Office of Management and Budget Di- rector Thomas Bertram (Bert) Lance resigned from office amid a flurry of investigations into his banking practices. A former Georgian banker, Lance defended himself to the end stating that the amount of controversy forced him to resign. One week earlier he had testified to a Senate Govern- mental Affairs Committee that his financial practices were totally justified. Under scrutiny were a $3.4 million loan he secured from the First National Bank of Chica- go shortly after that bank had established a correspondent relationship with the bank he was associated with in Georgia, a $2.6 million personal loan from Manufacturers Hanover Trust which coincided with the opening of a correspondent relationship between Manufac- tuers and The National Bank of Georgia where he was an official and a series of family loans causing him to overdraw his accounts. The Senate committee in July found nothing improper about the Chaicago bank loan, but banking regulations prohibit use of bank funds as a compensating balance for a personal loan to a bank official, as was suspected in the case of the loan from Manufacturers Hanover. One of his most persistent critics was Comptroller of the Currency John Heiman who flatly stated that this recurring pattern of shifting bank relationships and personal bor- rowing raises unresolved questions as to what constitutes acceptable banking practice. White House Press Secretary Jody Powell confirmed Aug. 26, 1977 that Lance used a single block of shares as collateral for two separate loans from two separate banks. After the resignation. Carter said he never regretted hiring Lance, Another Georgian, James T. Mclntyre was hired to fill Lance ' s spot. The Securities and Exchange Commission would later charge Lance, after its own investi- gation, with making improper use of bank funds by a bank official. The lighter side Wisconsin elected its first female judge Sept. 7, 1977 when voters decided to can Dane County Judge Archie Simonson in a re- call election, Simonson found himself in the middle of public controversy when he decided in court that a teenage boy was reacting normally when the youth raped a 15-year old girl who had been wearing provocative clothing. The elected judge, Maria Krueger was one of four candidates opposing Simonson.