Panzer College - Olympia Yearbook (East Orange, NJ)

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J 11 ■ i) A 3 PANZER COLLEGE OF PHYSICAL EDUCATION AND HYGIENE

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PANZER COLLEGE OF PHYSICAL EDUCATION AND HYGIENE East Orange, New Jersey te eti t J-lie Jluntv ia O ' ' ; p

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THE COLLEGE IN THE WAR Other classes have written the chronological history of Panzer College in their college annuals. It is fitting that the classes now in college, and particularly the graduates of 1946, should write its current history. This deals with the years of war. Our nation had been at war for two years when the senior class entered Panzer as freshmen in September 1943. Throughout the country, colleges were facing reduced enrollments, faculties were drawn into armed services, and many teacher education departments of physical education had closed for the duration. Panzer faced all these problems, and with courage and vision met the emergency. The accelerated program, initiated in 1942, was continued. Who can forget the forty-eight weeks of college sessions each year, and the long summer months spent in the classroom? The courses were reorganized and more closely coordinated with the library. Small classes made possible individual assignments, and testing became a regular part of class instruction. New scholastic regulations left little time to worry. Yet in spite of all this, memories of the close association with each other and with the faculty will remain a cherished memory. Naturally, the enrollment was composed mainly of women. The extra- curricular program was adjusted accordingly, and many different types of social activities were scheduled. Athletic events were continued even though war restrictions made traveling impossible. Although only nine men were enrolled in September 1944, the college was represented by a basketball team. A few games of soccer and baseball were played by borrowing players from the opposing teams. Teas, luncheons, dinner parties and trips to the theatre replaced formal dances. A dance at all was a rare occasion, which usually took the form of a tea dance. The whole student body attended the circus, ice shows and Radio City. A big sister committee was formed by the senior class to give guidance to freshman women. This democratic organization prompted har- mony among students. War activities also received the support of the student. They gave generously to the Red Cross and to the War Chest of the Oranges and Maplewood. They contributed to the Red Cross blood bank; gave dance recitals for servicemen ' s clubs; and purchased war bonds for the endowment fund of the college. Under the Foster Parent ' s plan, the students of the college adopted an orphan from Holland, and paid for his maintenance and education. All this is history, in which the class of 1946 participated. Further- more, what other class will remember so vividly V-E Day, V-J Day? The spiritual uplift which swept us to churches to give thanks for victory and for the hope of peace cannot be repeated. No other graduating class but that of 1946 will experience the first use of the atomic bomb, the beginning of the United Nations Organization, the joy of welcoming the returning servicemen, and the rush of G.l. ' s to the college. These included some men who left college to enter the armed forces before we entered the war. Their places were kept for them, and now they, too, are on the road to graduation. Nor can another class know the thrill of attending once more the Senior Bail, which turned into a reunion for alumni and veterans. Yes, the class of 1946 has lived history. To the trustees and faculty of our college, we express our admiration and affection for their inspiring leadership and remarkable achievements in an unequalled world crisis. 3 •