1933

At this time of writing (October 1) the weather in Hanover and environs is beautiful, and the fall foliage is early and already truly spectacular. The temperature, however, is gradually dropping due to the colder nights and the polar air moving in from the Canadian northwest. I realize this is much nicer now than when you will be reading these notes, but it will be comforting to remember as Thanksgiving and the holiday season approach.

As president of the Class, Bill Dewey has called a meeting of the officers and members of the executive committee on Saturday, October 16 at 9:30 a.m. in room 102, Reed Hall, for those who are attending the Dartmouth-Harvard game and the 1933 get-together after the game at the Hotel Coolidge in White River Jet., Vt. Bill calls attention to the need to start some thinking and conversation toward our next reunion in 1979. Among the agenda-items for the meeting are: (1) achieving a higher percentage within the Class of those paying their dues and receiving the ALUMNI MAGAZINE (now 67 per cent - the lowest of all classes), (2) plans for the 1979 reunion, and (3) plans for possible special football weekend reunions in 1977 and 1978 as a build-up for the 1979 reunion. The results of the meeting will be reported in both Bob Fox's newsletter and this column in December.

The College trustees have just announced the granting of emeritus status to our GeorgeTheriault following his retirement on June 30. Our further congratulations!

According to a memorandum from Dennis Dinan, editor of the MAGAZINE, dated September 27, Shelby Grantham and Dan Nelson '75 have been appointed as class notes and obituary editors, succeeding Joan Hier. Shelby, who is to work with the secretaries of the classes from 1902 to 1940, has been a printer, a lecturer in the Dartmouth English department, and has a Ph.D. in English from the University of Virginia.

Thanks to Larry Leavitt '25, a close friend and fellow resident of Norwich, Vt., I am able to report here on an article appearing in the BostonSunday Herald Advertiser of August 29 by VanCollins, who has been professor of higher education at Boston College since 1969, a post he took after 20 years as president of the State University of New York. Van writes most thoughtfully and convincingly of the changes that are occuring in our colleges and universities due to two major factors - economics and enrollment. He characterizes the decade of the '6os as a climax in a century of growth culminating in a total of some eight million college students. This violent growth reflected both the increasing popularity of college and the tremendous increase in the size of the college-age population, while in the decade of the '70s the ranks of the future college-goers were diminishing - the number of five-year-olds was off 5 per cent and the number of births was dropping to the lowest rate in our history.

Van says that the fiscal crunch, which is the result of decreasing enrollments and increasing costs, will continue for colleges and get worse for students and their parents. Students and faculty will face the question of the purpose and utility of their college studies, will weigh the emphasis on preparation for a job or a career, and debate the basic distinction between preparation for earning a living and preparation for living a life. This debate, too, will clarify the identity of the college or university, force it to define its mission, and aid it in achieving its selected purpose.

The Alumni Records Office has confirmed that Dawn (Mrs. Hobart M.) Van Deusen's address will continue to be Wentworth, N.H. 03282, and that Dorothy (Mrs. Charles L.) Rich's address is still 67 Beech Street, Norwood, Mass. 02062. On the other hand, Mrs. Gerald C. Palmer's address in Bel Air, Md., now is 304 Vale Road 21014.

Incidentally, may I remind you to send in your class dues to Sam Cunningham at an early date if by chance you have not already done so. Sam is eager to hear from you, and let's try for at least 75 per cent in our payment, instead of the 67 per cent reported by Bill Dewey.

The news from individual members is low at present. I trust some of you wives and widows will pass on news of your families and friends while I am waiting to hear from additional '33ers.

Happy Thanksgiving to each of you.

Spirit of '32: John Zimmerman in solemn discourse during reunions last June.

Secretary Box 302 Norwich, Vt. 05055

Treasurer, 9 Will Merry Lane Greenwich, Conn. 06830