Wabash College - Wabash Yearbook (Crawfordsville, IN)

Page 18 text:

The class of 1973 has attended Wabash during a very transitional and often uncertain stage in the life of the College. A central part of this situation has concerned the curriculum, for beginning in 1973- 74 school year Wabash will initiate a new curriculum for the second time in five years. A much broader curriculum, in terms of basic requirements, existed prior to the 1969-70 year. Under that old system all students had to meet very simular academic requirements. Underclassmen found that they had to take courses in English, a foreign language, mathematics, physical education, biology, physics-chemistry, fine arts and or speech, literature, philosophy and or religion, history, and the behavioral sci- ences. Students were expected to have met most of those requirements by the end of the sophomore year so that the next two years could be spent in pursuing a major and minor subject. Of course, Compre- hensive Exams were given in both the major and minor field. Thus, unless a student was clearly superior he had little or no time to pursue electives in his particular field of interest. According to the Institutional Profile, the 1960’s was a time “‘when both the national and local environment invited more freedom of choice on the part of the student.” In 1969 Wabash altered its curriculum substantially in order to deal with that situation. Several courses were offered which had previously not been a part of the traditional liberal arts education at Wabash. Foremost among these were Chinese, Black studies, and Theatre. Today the Theatre department is in a period of rapid growing, and a major in that area is now possible. Black studies have hit a plateau after an initially fast growth rate and most of the courses seem aimed toward the naive or ignorant white student. Another possible reason for this lag is the turnover rate of professors in the area of Black studies, especially in the English department. The Chinese courses were dropped after the 1970-71 school year due to lack of interest. Still, the student under this curriculum had ample opportunity to take numerous elective courses from his freshman year on. By graduation, several students had accumulated more than 40 hours in their major subject. It is not surprising that the Profile noted 6

Page 17 text:

Let’s face it, Wabash spirit comes and goes according to the successes and failures of our athletic teams. This year was no exception. Football and basketball were mediocre, sometimes down-right horrible. And they’re the sports that still count ... though not as much as they used to. But , regardless of their records, our school spirit was high. Why? Because we had the best record against DePauw in recent history, ten wins and four losses (two of them in golf). Our victories over DePauw are what really count ... and we have the Monon Bell to show for it. The Wabash-DePauw rivalry goes back for decades. It is even said that DePauw first labeled us ‘““(Cavemen;” “(Wabash was pleased, and promptly adopted the flattering epithet ... the worst thing about the name ... was the feeling it seemed to give students ... of an obligation to live up to it,” (DePauw Through the Years). And we do live up to it ... as far as the Dannies are concerned! Without Wabash and our spirit, stunts and cunning there would be no Wabash — DePauw rivalry. The Dannies don’t care about the oldest rivalry west of the Alleghanies, and it is up to Wabash to add fire and significance to the annual battles. During the lean years, when DePauw held the bell for a full decade Wabash stole it three times, in 1959, 65, and 66. The last heist showed so much cunning and daring that it made the New York Times. Wabash men make annual pilgrimages to DePauw in October and November ... to spread the word about our superi- ority. And superior we are — as we proved this year: DEPAUW TO HELL, KEEP THE BELL! epithet ... ETS Spb inn gobs Mire Sean AS aia d FF PERT EEVSEELETEDS ELE RES PEER UEP SARA aE Ee SSR iectel eae Se ee ee De ee eee eee Nt ee Sed oe Ao 96 OT AOE SSA Le OORT:

Page 19 text:

“In many cases the academic major was left as the only inteilectual perspective the students were left to enjoy.” The new curriculum appears to strike something of a happy medium between the two previous ones. For example, students will be required to take courses in laboratory science, foreign language or mathematics, cultures and traditions, and a Freshman Tutorial. In addition they will have to demonstrate a proficiency in English. That still leaves room for a careful choice of elective subjects in the underclass years. Under this new system hours are replaced by courses in determining academic progress, 32 courses being the minimum necessary for gradua- tion. The student must have both a departmental or major concentra- tion and also a area concentration. No more than nine courses in the major will be counted toward graduation, thus alleviating the problem mentioned above. But perhaps the most interesting aspect of the new curriculum is the areaconcentration. It will be the student’s respon- sibility to develop and justify his area concentration in terms of his overall academic program. Thus, a student planning on a teaching career would be able to pursue that goal in his area concentration in addition to meeting the requirements in his major subject. Apparent- ly the student will have a wide range of choice in this matter, and it is to the curriculum’s credit that it is the student who will bear the burden of developing his area of study. 3 This latest curriculum will certainly aid the student in planning a coherent course of study. It may also offer a partial answer to those who are seeking some form of revitalized “community” at Wabash. The College must attract more and better qualified students in the next few years if it wishes to counteract the recent downward trend. Whether this curriculum would be a factor in attracting such students is debatable. However, if Wabash is to survive in the coming years it must offer its students a solid liberal arts education tempered with a realization of the tight job market for the college graduate. Wabash must prepare its students for jobs as well as graduate school. The new curriculum is a step in that direction. — Kissling