William Jewell College - Tatler Yearbook (Liberty, MO)

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of xxmww' I new ' Above: Chuck Lopez, sr. scans a medical journal from the magazine racks which divide the Reading Room. Right: A single sign near the entrance of Curry Library summed up all of the efforts in the library campagn. Below: After Spring Break the library had a new look with the addition of a display case. 8 f Library Noise -b ' J i 7 I

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I gh Steelers in ohler consult. ing cart race. , - 1 '16 , T- fit x I ' l -Hui. 1 lv f' H -..nfs- . . fs' ., 4 I ' 'I gtffffrala' o A . ,t , -vi 1 l i- 4 s::1w e ,..,-M , ,, W- Hgh-T: i w: -My fe- A., ig:-vg g A I' ' .tif f,-fggjfixiziig f 1 g g A . vkgjf Q, si 1.-fi -' 1 Tai V- g X . I ' Conflicting loyalties, a Concerned Senate, and a controversial flag motivate students to begin reaking Down the Barriers b Kirk Priddy ustice, understanding, dialogue, and care were the , battering rams in a battle 5 waged on several fronts I across the William lewell I campus this year. The aim I was to break down bar- A , f, riers and the attack was led , by the Student Senate, J following the lead of Presi- dent Mike Smith and Vice-President Scott Burton. Other groups, ,such as Christian Stu- dent Ministries, fell in behind as the campus family began to recognize the invisible walls of pride and prejudice that were separating each individual and group from the broader college community. -' - I come from a very backward area of the state, racially, and in my own life I have had to overcome many pre- judices. I feel like many students have, at this college, come from similar backgrounds, stated Smith in explana- tion of the emphasis. It was on the racial front, in fact, that barriers were first confronted during the school year. Though many other divi- sions were identified by student senators, the tension that had been growing along racial lines .for some time seemed to merit immediate concern. As quickly as the Senate could move to begin breaking down, the walls, new bricks and mortar were being add- ed to the barricades that separated black and white students on campus. Fueled by intense feelings about the ap- propriateness of the Confederate flag flown twice a year at the Kappa Alpha fraternity house, the barriers began to rise at a growing rate during the fall semester. By November, however, the Senate had succeeded in getting both sides to begin constructive dialogue as a first step in solving the problem. A number of forums were held at which minority students could voice their ideas and complaints. We wanted to make sure that minority groups had the chance to talk about the problems they saw, said Burton. UA couple of evenings, we even went to dinner together, he added. As the process continued a growing desire seemed to develop on both minority and majority sides to begin resolving differences. The battle, however, had only begun. Com- municating was our biggest problem, said so. Rachel Hsu, member of another campus minority - the International students. Improving relations with that group was also part of the barriers emphasis adopted by the Senate. As the spring semester drew to a close it was evident that efforts to break down barriers were finally beginning to meet with some success. The college administration asked that the Con- federate flag no longer be displayed publicly, and the seeds sown in Senate forums began to take root in relation- ships across minority and racial lines throughout the college community. I feel that the Senate's ,work has been a great help in trying to make the undercurrent tension rise to the sur- face and be dealt with on a more public level, said sr. Margaret Moore. Many others would agree. At least at year's end it was evident that the battles would no longer be fought in secret. . Breaking Down Barriers I 7 A Tgg .,. , .

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l t lf . l ,I U X K X 1 I 1 i ' l ,V xv: I, 1. l Q , .. . 1,16 ..'- ... , ug f?5-' 4- 1i '7':fa-,. .gene gijivi- .57f'.-- K +s , --. igf ft-t .,.fwsgh-feed-2. b V- a-we on K.. f-.- - af., A - V, .., m g, ff!-in H .vide J-Pb' ,-fragw ,sift 4' JF., l gif: J. v ff.. - - 1-. 1 . WAV :S 9' M0nir0rs,anewly giassedin and a' change in perceptions helped in the campaign for uiet Library by Meredith Moore ewell's classic reputation has been marred by it for years rf 13 and it has been out of sync 1-as-Q-Q with the rest of its high academic standards. Over the decades the problem W3 TT, wtf grew in proportion until the .Ely rl fs T faculty and administration ,Li e fs V ,u ,. , decided immediate action was necessary. They called together a special committee headed by Dr. Dean Dunham whose job it was to come up with a solution and imple- ment it before the year was over. The administration had' grown -tired of scheduling accreditors tours around D period. K This concerned group of faculty, ad- ministrators and students were fighting the noisy Library. The Reading Room in the entrance of Curry Library had become ,student lounge, a singles bar. During'Dgperiod it was the place to be. Looking for a date for Formal? Go to the Library. A quick visit with friends? They're sure to be 'in the lounge. And those who stayed up late studying at Perkins could be found snoring on the cushioned couches. In fact, students showed indignation if they were asked toabe quiet downstairs in the lounge. Serious students should go ups' A s if they wanted to study D period. uring the cold winter the lounge 'vi 1 'ly' - s a warm refuge for those ,ff f who di l b t want to makethe trek back to 'their orms or fraternity houses. The Reading Room had a hub of activity and it all added up to noise. It wasn't just the hiss of intense whispering, it was loud, laughing noise -F 'the kind one would expectto comefrom a student lounge. And that was the catch. This raucous lounge just didn't fit in the building sup- posed to be the center of William lewell's classic style of learning. The Library Committee's job was to change perceptions, to convince the students that the Reading Room was a room for reading, not a student lounge. The Quiet Library Campaign began unobtrusively with small red Student Senate signs requesting quiet. After much debate in Senate and discussion of an alternative lounge, a monitor system was introduced which cast Dr, lim Tanner and several other faculty members in the role of George Orwell's Big Brother. It was 1984 and there he was watching every move. When students made noise they were asked to leave or stop talking. I think a lot of people were offend- ed by it . . . being asked to be quiet, said Rebecca Wachter, fr. They were offended and felt aban- doned. There are very few rooms for group study in the library, and the plans for an alternative lounge were tied up in administrative red tape. The Cage Snack Bar got busier for a while, and Dean Nay sold more donuts, but on-campus students had to -compete with com- muters who had always had control over the Cage. . f So they continued going to the library and it did get quieter. The Noisy Library was a dragon that could fbe slain with monitor-knights and weapons of dividing walls and book shelves. The campaign stirred emotions in 1984, but quieting the library made it once. again part of the campus and its classic style. Library Noise I 9 . ...sd ' . f '- -,Q-,.gf74'l'-ei jffls.. H . V 'T ' ,g-.DQ...-.Q-----g 5--L ' r f I ,affg-Y-VL.: 1 V wr Y ,Y:,,,1...- ,,'7f1?f:yi 7' -f Z 4 4 - V 4-4261 , I f:-rl .- '.::7?, '5:71,'-1 J' -' ' ' f-ligga 1' y1'!'Li.' 'f,,' fTT , T -.. V .,,v T ,- ,Q A,- .ff XQ .ff . TX