Southeast Missouri State University - Sagamore Yearbook (Cape Girardeau, MO)

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Shortages began to hurt the nation right to the pocketbook as the economic picture turned from inflation to recession. Prices for gasoline, sugar, utilities, and housing were on the increase as the supplies of these goods decreased. Every- one felt the pressures of living within a tight budget, and those who were a part of the high unemployment rate faced living with no budget at all. As President Ford asked the nation to whip inflation now, more students began to help out their own economic situation through off-campus and on-campus jobs. Gasoline prices went up, and students living in the dorms took fewer trips home. When trips were made, car pools and pumping gas at less expensive service stations were tactics used to keep costs down. Inflation hit everywhere on campus to the cost of building Homecoming floats to the cost of buying vend- ing machine soda. Congressional leaders in every state battled over ratification of the Equal Rights Amend- ment, and women gradually began to step into once-forbidden male jobs and responsibilities. lVlissouri became a crucial state in deciding the fate of the amendment, and even local politicians held opposing views on the subject. Speakers both for and against ratification appeared on campus to submit their interpretations of what the ERA involved. 2,16 1. 2 .L QI , 2 . 5 Nw -J Quia--Ni,

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On a campus with a man to woman ratio of one-to-one, the importance of the ERA and the woman's role in society became a frequently talked about issue. Women students began stepping into male campus job roles when two female janitors were hired. When the economy, politics, and pressing social issues began to burden the public mind, people looked to sports and even nostalgia for relaxation and entertainment. Evil Knieval captured the American public's eye with his sus- penseful drama, the motorcycle jump over Snake River Canyon in Idaho. Another twentieth century hero, Hank Aaron, broke the Babe Ruth home run record, and the name Lou Brock became synonymous with the words stolen bases. Fashions from the fifties, television shows from those happy days, and a variety of fads all caught the attention of the nation. Students took an interest in the past with nostal- gic features such as marathon dances and fifties dances. Streaking, building gigantic ice-cream sundaes, and piling male students on a mattress were substitutes for the gold- fish eating crazes of yesteryear. lt was an active and involving type of world, and the campus didn't sit back and watch the nation fly by but be- came a participating element. Learning meant becoming involved with political contests, solving problems of short- ages, and making important decisions. By taking part, stu- dents proved that the education wasn't for today or for SEIVIO, but for tomorrow and society.