Oglethorpe University - Yamacraw Yearbook (Atlanta, GA)

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Residents Relocated THE YAMACRAW 1981 A-3 Alumni Remodelling Underway Students whose favorite topic of conversation is how lousy dorm life is may find themselves in trouble - when they soon have less to com- plain about. Stately old Alumni Hall is going through a facelift, to the tune of a quarter of a million dollars. Plans call for the work to be wrapped up by the Fall 1981 semester (so hopefully some will be reading this in a dorm reborn). What can students, especially those of the male persuasion, expect from this colossal cash committment? Reportedly a lot. Residents, and even casual visitors should be able to notice the differences immediately. The basic renovation, of course, is modelled after the work done on Trustees Hall a few years ago. The enlarged rooms will all have private access (no corridors) except on the third floor, with individual bath- room and shower facilities. But even more improvements are in store. Better sound- proofing and climate control units will be installed, and The Oglethorpe Student Association and its Social Committee are responsi- ble for planning many major social events (namely dances and parties), and of course, providing the refresh- ments. See OSA, page B-l many interior items such as doors and tiles will be replaced. New shingles will also be added to the list. Finally, a room for the handicapped will be opened on the first floor, providing easy access to the rest of the hall and to the outside. If Trustees is any indica- tion, the changes should be a huge and welcome success. In the short time since this dorm was revamped, its rooms have become perhaps the most coveted on campus. Former Alumni residents will be given first choice at the all-new version, but all male campus-dwellers can take heart - the other three buildings are scheduled for a beauty treatment sometime in the future. So, with any luck, everyone can enjoy Holiday Inn style living sometime before the end of the decade. In the meantime, be sure to step carefully around those sinks and toilets out in the middle of the quad. As students were leaving for summer vacation, this was the extent of the Education remodelling efforts. Hopefully, plans for redecoration are underway. Continued from Ps. A-1 For the literary minded on campus, there are three major publications put out regularly at Oglethorpe. As any editor of the TOWER, STORMY PETREL, or YAMACRAW will admit, there is never an abundance of contributors, writers, typists or layout people on staff. The requirement for membership in these respective organizations sounds familiar: willingness, on the part of the potential staff member, to be active and learn. ' et. there are some students who prefer to lay back and let involvement find them. In athletic activities as well. Oglethorpe provides programs involving intramural and intercollegiate competition. However. such programs are defined by the athletes who choose to become involved. The operative word, again, is choose. .Although basketball and soccer teams r ecruit players, other teams rely heavily on volunteers. The question, then, is almost too tired to be asked: Why sit and stare at the dorm room walls when there is so much to become involved and active with here? College, my friends, is not so distanced from the real world that an age old axiom can be ignored; life is, ultimately, what you choose to make it.

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A-2 1981 THE YAMACRAW Jgamacratt) Oglethorpe University Established 1919 • GOLDEN EDITION Volume 50, 1981 The Yamacraw Nicki Brown Editor Dr. John A. Thames Advisor The Company Mr. Bill Wolfe Walsworth Publishing Company The University Manning M. Pattillo, Jr. President Let ' s Have A Brand New U! An Editorial (?) Atlanta is a city on the move (at least, so they tell us during the public service messages during station identification), although its exact direction has yet to be settled. It is only fitting, then, that Oglethorpe, the city ' s - maybe even the New South ' s lone Suburban University should find itself on the move as well. This year, students were electrified by a number of unexpected and unique new improvements - some said they had never known or dreamt of their like before. If the administration is wise enough, they can seize the moment and initiate a sweeping program of changes that will change the face of the present O.U. and set it on a path straight into the late 1940 ' s. First, the President would be well advised to secure the college ' s shaky status as part of the suburban scene. Contributions from alumni, increases in tuition, and cutbacks to school services can allow the school to purchase pesky outposts of civilization such as Limelight and Lenox Square. The latter can easily be remodeled in the Gothic style and converted into extra space for the expanded E.L.S. program. Offending sidewalks and parking lots between the regular campus and this new annex can be torn up by now idle work-study students and turned into fertile countryside again. Trees and shrubbery can be solicited from friends of the University all over the globe - after all, if it worked for Israel, why can ' t it work for us? Why, the possibilities are as endless as they are exciting. Money left over from this bold new project can be used to complete the extra floors of Faith Hall that had originally been planned. Famed architect John Portman could oversee the construction, not only to attract the national press, but he could also erect a monolith to dwarf the now passe Peachtree Plaza Hotel. Think of the publicity of PM Magazine when the 80th floor was finished and girders for the 81st put into place! No more obscurity for the namesake of General James Edward. Within a few generations, the curriculum could even be expanded to fill part of the space. Meanwhile, our sprawling Fine Arts program will lend its budding young sculptors to provide gargoyles and other gothic accessories for this and other buildings. Hearst, for instance, could do with a good set of flying buttresses. Continued Pg. A-5 Education Of One ' s Own Making An Editorial Oglethorpe University takes pride, rightfully, in its unique position as Atlanta ' s Suburban University - the administration of the University is quick to elaborate on the advantages of such a location. At a small liberal arts college such as Oglethorpe, faculty-types will tout, a student will find the close-knit atmosphere among students and professors to be of great value in his academic and social education, while the cultural and economic opportunities inherent in an urban mecca such as Atlanta also provide incalculable opportunities for a more fully rounded education - if the student is willing to search out these opportunities. It is true that Oglethorpe ' s size and location, as well as its faculty ' s impressive credentials, offer students numerous advantages. Yet many students here complain of Oglethorpe ' s lack of social atmosphere, its lack of course variety, and in short, its lack of excitement. While these charges are also true (but the same could be said of any college or university), take a look around Oglethorpe - at the offerings of the various organizations and departments. Perhaps the very students who complain loudest of this boring campus are significant contributors to their own lament. Consider first, for a sampling of excitement and glamour, the productions staged every semester by the University ' s drama department, the O.U. Players. There are no academic prerequisites for involvement in this club; in fact, a member who works a certain number of hours on a particular production is eligible for academic credit. Here, as in most Oglethorpe ' s clubs, little is required of a potential member but a willingness to learn and participate. Is there a waiting list to belong to such an open-minded club? Hardly. The Players recruit avidly for membership each year. Where, then, are those who complain of not having anything to do? Complaining of not having anything to do, no doubt. Continued Pg. A-3 Extra-curricular activities at Ogleth- orpe allow students to do anything from discussing philosophy to learning karate. Or, if you ' re feeling destruc- tive, you can blow up the chemistry lab with the . CS. To find out about what has been happening outside the classroom, see Lifestyle, section B.

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A-4 1981 THE YAMACRAW Brothers And Sisters Fight For Fun At O.U. During the spring, the Greeks almost seem to disap- pear into the masonry. Hard- ly a partying peep can be discerned, yet brothers and sisters can occasionally be found making furious plans. Then suddenly Greek Week begins, and the Greeks are all back in sight, loyally cheering for their various groups for a week of intramural competi- tion. The Greek Week Cer- emonies, which are a t radi- tion at Oglethorpe, are pat- terned after the ancient Greek Olympics, but more than athletic skills are matched nowadays. This year ' s festivities, held April 12-18, seemed to include a little of everything. The Week formally began with the traditional Chariot Race. Although SAE, it was judged, had the best looking chariot, Chi Phi proved to all in the actual race that beauty is only skin deep. Both men and women continued the competitions with Softball, but the rest of the athletic competitions were slightly different for men and women. The women ' s field events were the three-legged race, the sack race, the obstacle course, the orange pass, the egg race and egg toss, and the softball throw. For track events, the women ran the 440 relay and the 100 yard dash, and competed in a walk race. The men ' s field events also included the softball throw and the egg race, but the men also matched skills at Frisbee, weightlifting, and arm wres- tling. Track events were the 100 yard dash, 440 relay, the long jump, the shot put, the mile and a marathon run. Continued on Pg. B-25 Highlights of Greek Week festivities. Top: Chi Omega sisters showing their talents at the sing. Middle Left: The Delta Zeta skit, The Adams Family. Above: Chi Phi gets into the true Greek spirit. Far Left: The pirates of Kappa Alpha in the Skits. Left: Sigma Alpha Epsilon participates in the fraternity sing.