University of Iowa - Hawkeye Yearbook (Iowa City, IA)

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The Dean of Women ADELAIDE L. BURGE Dean of Women ONE of tlic busiest coi-nern of Ilio (;ini])ii3 is the wing of Old Capitol where Dean Adelaide L. Burge and her aides de c-,-iin|i i-iirry on thoir tasks as foster mother to the hosts of S.U.T. co-eds who each year arc under the supervision of the Dean of Women. Not the least difficult of the many problems confronting Dean Burge arc those which deal with the Iowa maidens who daily seek the royal audience chamber for advice on everything from how to earn extra pin money to whether or not it would be wise to elope without father ' s consent. One and .-ill receive the same sympathetic attention from Dean Burge. In addition to playing the dual role of mother confessor and guardian angel to dozens of Iowa University co-eds, Mrs. Burge is faced with the serious problem of satisfactorily housing all the young women who attend the university. In 1913, Currier Hall was built as the main dormitory for women and was then considered as sufficient housing space for all the women on the campus. In a few years it was necessary to establish several houses as annexes to Currier to take proper care of the increasing housing problem. This year, a new addition to Currier Hall will be built in order to provide dormitory space for Freshman girls only. This addition will provide housing accommodations for one hundred twenty girls. The office of Dean of Women offers advice to co-eds in selecting their courses of study until after their major subject is chosen. Standards of scholarship are set, opportunities for self-help in solving financial problems are provided, and life in sorority houses and private homes is supervised by the Dean of Women and her helpers. In addition to these activities, which would be more than enough to keep most people busy, Dean Burge is in close association with all women ' s organiza- k tions on the campus which tend to benefit co-ed life. Dean Burge has held the position of Dean of Women since 1921. Her matter-of-fact friendliness with each and every girl of the university, her magnetic personality and her splendid efficiency at her post have long established her as one of the powerful factors in the life of this great university. The office of Dean of Women was established in 1900, and each year brings added duties and complications to solve. Twenty-three

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The Dean of Men s ROBERT E. RIENOW Dean of Men OMETIME along about the middle of the first semester, it is not uncommon for a freshman to receive a postcard in Hie morning mail. This card is postmarked Iowa City and bears the message: Please call at my office at your earliest convenience. All this is not so terrifying, but when the unfortunate sees the signature, Robert Reinow, Dean of Men, he is aware that there exists a quality known as mental anguish. Timidly he makes his first visit. The secretary, familiar with such events, looks at his card and tells him to wait. It has be- come almost a tradition that in order to see the dean of men, a person must wait. The length of time laken by this procedure involves anywhere from ten minutes to three hours. Only the truly great achieve enough prominence to slip in ahead of a long line. Finally the door is opened and the freshman enters, with fear in his heart and terror in his mind. And then comes the surprise. What a difference from the ogre the freshman expects to see. For sitting behind the broad-topped desk is a perfectly normal man, with a pleasant smile and a kind voice. The freshman is not convinced yet, how- ever, that he will not be criticized. Instead of a severe reprimand, numerous questions are asked. None are harmful inten- tionally; all seek to get to the root of the trouble and if possible find a remedy in seeking. The conversation is not one-sided; it is mutually progressive. A discussion is the result of the conference rather than a lecture. This is the situation which exists at present. Instead of a place where one fears to go in time of trouble, there has developed an idea of creating a service station where aid and advice are given freely and unstintingly. Robert E. Rieiiow, who for fifteen years has been the person behind the desk in the southeast office in the basement of Old Capitol, has gradually developed a feeling that student govern- ment is good. In fact, that it is better than administrative handling of affairs in some instances. He has a hard role to play. He must be at once the confessor, advisor, and disci- plinary officer to the entire group of men students. Generally, however, according to diversified student opinion the new office of Dean of Men is proving successful in render- ing aid to the student today. Twenty-two

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The College of Liberal Arts GEORGE F. KAY Dean HAT are you taking? Oh, L.A.? Well, you won ' t have to study a great deal to pull down some good grades. ' ' How often is such a remark made. Yet, what is the vital truth concerning the College of Liberal Arts on this ca nipus ? It may be this peculiar idea developed because the subjects taught in this branch of the. university are known to be easy Fo grasp. It may be that the ' most intelligent students are registered in this college. Nevertheless, there stands in the way of all ' these arguments the fact that a degree given in this department is rec- ognized as being attained only after work of high scholastic standard. Various members of the professional colleges have been heard to remark that the cry of the present day is Specialization! And yet, all things considered, and the total result realized, the process of specialization is not nearly so important as the achievement of creating a broad background before the limitation of the world of study to restricted areas. A fact which the student of today is realizing more than ever before. Several years ago, scientists could see no possible relation between the study of animal biology and the pulling of a few teeth. Yet all pre-dentals are now required to be exposed to hours of animal bi before entering the professional college. George F. Kay, a member of the faculty of the Department of Geology and State Geologist of Iowa, is the fourth man to hold the position of Dean of the College since its foundation in 1855. His predecessors include Amos N. Currier, L.G.G., Weld, and William C. Wilcox. These men have seen the college grow from about 500 to nearly 6,000. Liberal Arts has become the starting place of the entire university. All professional schools are dependent on it for their enrollments. Countless numbers of men and women have taken work .in its halls and later become practicing profession- als. It may be frilly said that this unit of the university has become a sort of preparatory school for training in general and cultural fields before admission into specialized work. MERRILL S. GAFFXEY EARLE E. BEMAN DONALD PAREL PAUL H. PRESTON Twenty-four