University of Virginia Library

Shannon, Williams Grant Approval
For Girls In First-Year Dormitories

By Tom Jenks
Cavalier Daily Staff Writer

For the first time in the history of the University, first-year
students will be allowed to have women in their dormitory
residences, as President Edgar F. Shannon and Dean of Student
Affairs, Alan Williams, yesterday approved a motion created by
the First-year Committee to enable visitation in the first-year
dormitories on Midwinters Weekend.

The motion, which was passed by the Student Council and the
Executive Committee on Counselors in conjunction with the
First-year Committee, says that female visitation hours on the
first-year dormitories will be as follows: Friday 4 p.m. to 3 a.m.,
Saturday 11 a.m. to 3 a.m., Sunday 11 a.m. to 8 p.m.

The motion further states, "that
it will be the responsibility of the
First-year Committee to see that
these hours are adhered to, and that
any violations shall be reported to
the Executive Committee on
Counselors."

The approval of this motion
provides for visitation only on
Midwinters Weekend and is in many
ways a test of the first-year mens'
responsibility. In a letter that all
first-year men will receive in the
mail today, President Shannon says,
"No amount of external supervision
will guarantee the success of the
parietal regulations as temporarily
established for this weekend, or as
they shall be permanently
established for the future.

"It cannot be stressed enough
that the ultimate success or failure
of this system will be determined
by you - the First-Year Residents."

Dormitory counselors will
assume no extra responsibilities
concerning women in the
dormitories, rather, as is usual on
big weekends, they will enforce
only the existing regulations which
involve destruction of University
property, disobedience of
dormitory rules, disrespect for the
rights of others, and any actions
unbecoming a gentleman.

"The main type of thing that
counselors will be watching for this
weekend are loud or disruptive
parties in suites and rooms that
would disturb the peace of the
other residents of the dormitory,"
said Bick Cardwell, Chairman of
Counselors.

All first-year men and

particularly the First-year
Committee will be responsible for
seeing that the visitation hours are
kept and that no problems arise on
account of the presence of women
on the dormitories.

"First-year Committee members
will patrol the dormitories at
various times and will try to see to
it that no girls enter the dormitories
fore the visitation hours and that
none stay in after the end of the
hours," said Scott Saunders,
First-year Committee president.

"The approval of these
regulations by the Student Council,
the Executive Committee, and the
Office of the President is an explicit
vote of confidence in the ability of
the First-year Residents to handle
maturely this increased freedom,"
President Shannon said in his letter
to the first-year men.

He continued, "This weekend is
a test of your willingness to accept
this increased freedom and
responsibility. Your failure to do so
will seriously jeopardize the future
of any permanent parietal system
for the First-year Dormitories."

The approval of parietal rules
for Midwinters Weekend was
termed by Mr. Cardwell as an
experiment in self-rule and social
dormitory living. He also said that
it was hoped that the presence of
girls in the dormitories would not
affect or alter anyone's normal
code of conduct of upset normal
dormitory life.

If there are not numerous
violations of the rules this weekend,
a First-Year Residence Council will
be set up next week by the
First-year Committee to set the
permanent regulations and methods
of enforcement of First-year
Parietal Rules.

The motion to establish parietal
rules for Midwinters Weekend was
drawn up by the First-year
Committee's sub-committee on
Girls in the Dorms, after it was
learned that authority in this
matter had been transferred by the
Board of Visitors to President
Shannon.

Last Sunday night a petition for
the motion was drawn up by the
sub-committee, circulated on the
first-year dormitories, and signed
by 1097 first-year men.

Monday night the First-year
Committee approved the motion
unanimously and passed it on to
the Student Council which
approved it on Tuesday, and passed
it then on to The Executive
Committee which passed it on
Wednesday. Rich Evans was the
only Student Councilman to vote
against the motion.

The motion was then passed on
to President Shannon, who referred
it to Dean Williams. At 4 p.m.
yesterday the Office of the
President announced that the
motion had been approved.

Corridor meetings were held on
each hall last night to tell all
first-year men about the parietal
rules, to emphasize the
responsibility that has been placed
in their hands, and to make sure
that it is understood that the rules
as of now exist only for Midwinters
Weekend.

"I want to congratulate the
First-year Committee and its
president Scott Saunders for the
initiative they have shown in
bringing this thing about and in
working with the Student Council
and the Executive Committee.
Much "has been accomplished, but
there is much yet to do and the
burden of it rests on the first-year
class," Mr. Cardwell said.