Worcester Polytechnic Institute - Peddler Yearbook (Worcester, MA)

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Minute Men Nichols College. But though Tech didn’t participate in any such affairs, the administration pointed out that the student’s mind was not on his work. Attention was called to the steady increase during the last few years of the number of E and F grades at mid-term, and to a sudden drop in a normally steady weighed college average of 74.17 to a low 73.00. “Perhaps,” the solution presented stated, “it indicates a lower morale that may be general in all colleges and is apparent here in grades and some other schools in panty raids and riots.” Whatever the cause the matter received the serious concern of the faculty group studying a proposed alteration of the cur¬ riculum. Certainly “the biggest and the bestest” social event of the year was the annual Junior Prom. Highlighted by the smooth strains of the nationally known Elliot Lawrence and his company, a record crowd of three hundred odd fortunates were able to break up the pressure of campus studies. The event was so successful both financially and socially that it will no doubt be certain that all Junior classes to come will call on the services of some name band. Seven newly tapped members of Skull braved the ele¬ ments and the uncomfortable fire hydrants one evening, and the next day seven clean white-capped juniors had joined the ranks of that most honored and coveted cam¬ pus honorary society. Blessed by an unusually beautiful spring day, the An¬ nual Parents Day celebration proved to be an outstand¬ ing event. Activity in all phases of campus life attracted parents. The ball field lured the sports fan, while the auditorium was packed to hear the Band concert. The technically minded spent the day visiting the various labs and shops eagerly witnessing the shows and demonstra¬ tions presented by the departments. Tech’s R.O.T.C. made its own worthwhile contribution to the nationwide observance of Armed Forces Week. Im¬ pressive in their precision, and a credit to W.P.I. and its department of military science and tactics, 309 cadets passed in review on May 13 as part of the annual pro¬ gram of inspection by the Department of the Army. Dis¬ tinguished among the members of the reviewing party were Major General Kirke B. Lawton ’17, commanding general at the Signal Corps Center at Fort Monmouth, New Jersey, and Worcester’s mayor, Andrew B. Holm- strom ’17. The Varsity club held their sportsorama, while enter¬ taining for the engineers were the Aquamaids from Mass. U. The Tau Bete’s held their spring outing on the plains of the Alumni field late in May. A variety of activities greeted those participating. A sunny day and a victory for the lacrosse club set the stage for the other activities of the day, not the least of which was the faculty-student baseball game. ' Page Eight And on the seventh day . . . Stalag 221

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Youthful eyes peer into the future N O WHERE in our present day environment can one find as dynamic a society as in the college campus. Not a day can pass without some new and challenging experience confronting the individual. Susceptible to change as he is, the Tech student finds in a year of school many community and individual problems facing him, both as an individual and as a body. Each one of us has had to cope with his own personal set of crises and strug¬ gles, realizations and frustrations, joys and sorrows. But when the year is over and we look back at what we have or haven’t done, when we think of the things we wish we had said, or the days we should have stayed in bed, we realize that a year at Tech has helped us to become better citizens of the future. Each of us has been affected by a different and intricate combination of items drawn from the lengthy Worcester Tech spectrum. All exerting their influence in various directions have been the dorm, exams, the future, foot¬ ball, Alden Memorial, the Goat’s Head, reports, physics, homecoming, the ‘Palace’, bull sessions, G.I., the “B”, Jay’s, the mail. Skull, the draft board, war, politics and so on down the line of infinite length. We learn by experience. What better way to learn about ourselves and our school than by occasionally dusting off the building blocks that have gone into a year of construction on the ‘Hill’. That a yearbook cannot do this job is only too obvious. It is our hope that the pages which follow will in some small measure serve as a catalyst to the memory—the stimulant to refresh and renew events of the past year. We will touch only upon those things of broader interest with the hope that they might recall the myriad impres¬ sions with which each is associated. Our story begins in March 1953. The first signs of spring made their appearance early in the year in the form of tiny green buds on the ivy cov¬ ered bricks of Sanford Riley Hall. Inside, as well as out, there was a bee hive of activity. An eager band of fresh¬ man personages were putting together the last pieces of their Tech Carnival presentation. Although the evening of the Carnival was Friday the 13th, the omen proved no hindrance of the ’55ers, who took first place for the sec¬ ond year in a row in the Battle of the Carnival Cup. And while the lower classes were busy with the Carni¬ val, the council chambers of the fraternities were busy discussing the relative merits of hell vs help week. The year saw several more fraternities join the enlightened minority. The mayor announced ‘Roll Up Your Sleeve Day’ and the bloodmobile was a popular hangout as once again the Tech men showed their willingness to cooperate with a national cause. Socially the R.O.T.C. department celebrated the 90th anniversary of the Corps, the civils had their ‘Simple Civil Social’ while Phi Sigma Kappa copped the I.F. Basketball loop with an undefeated record. After 14 years as W.P.I.’s Dean of Admissions and of Students and twenty-nine years of continuous service to the Institute, Jerome W. Howe announced his retirement. In the halls of the faculty and in the ranks of the alumni, many were quick to recognize that Dean Howe’s depart¬ ure from the campus was a significant loss to the In¬ stitute. Spring, the month a young man’s fancy is supposed to turn lightly to thoughts of anything but school, found colleges throughout the country faced with problems of panty raids and riots. Even Worcester’s own Becker College was victim to some over-zealous visitors from Lehr und Kunst

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Breathe there a man with soul . . . While the bridge club was busy winning second place in the Intercollegiate Bridge Tourney, SPE once again proved their vocal talents by taking the coveted Pi Delt Songfest Trophy home for the fourth straight year. Little concern was attached to the fact that Tuesday, June 9, had been an oppressive day in Worcester, for there had been many days of that sort in New England during June. There had been many days when thunder clouds had gathered on the horizon by evening to give hope that once they had exploded their fireworks, relief would follow in their wake. And on many occasions that welcome relief was forthcoming. But June 9, 1953 was different. The clouds gathered, the storm came . . . but this time instead of relief, utter destruction followed. A credo Yours truly Fate was kind to the Class of ’53 in that it allowed Old Sol to shine enthusiastically on Sunday, June 14. 136 seniors received their sheep skins beneath the clear skies and in a pleasant Alumni Field setting. Fifteen hundred parents and guests had gathered to watch the ceremonies which marked the culmination of four years of hard work. Returning in late spring to the ‘Hill’ from all parts of the country, five hundred men found their ranks swelled by the addition of two hundred and sixty beany topped freshmen, one of the largest entering classes in Worcester history. The revised orientation program was accepted with great enthusiasm and the process of assimilation into the overall picture was well under way after a few days. The new freshman learned quickly about the Goat’s Head. Several appearances of the much sought after brass head were made early in the season. The informal demonstration of class spirit however was not as inspiring as the first organized hazing event of the year—the Paddle Rush. This rough, bruising exhibition of class spirit took place between the halves of the first home football game, and although the teams were evenly matched in numbers, the sophomores, capitalizing on one year of experience and training, took the honors. The introduction of a new rushing system by the I.F, council proved to be an enlightening alteration to the plans brought forth in previous years. Rushing rallies early in the year brought the frosh together with their fellow classmates and future fraternity brothers, and seemed to speed the adjustment which the new citizens had to make.