The Cavalier daily. :: Friday, March 21, 1969 :: University of Virginia Library

Members of the Faculty of Arts
and Sciences heard and approved an
announcement of a new series of
seminars designed exclusively for
incoming first-year men Wednesday
evening.

The establishment of these seminars
had been suggested by a
petition signed by some 770 first-year
men in the College.

Fill A Need

Fredson Bowers, Dean of the
Faculty, in making the announcement,
said that the seminars would
fill a need already expressed by the
committee on the evaluation of the
present College curriculum and
would be undertaken as experimental
seminars for at least a year
before meaningful evaluation of
them could be made.

Present plans call for seminars
being given in the McCormick and
Alderman Road dormitories by
faculty members, most of them
senior faculty status, on subjects of
their own choosing.

These subjects will be sent to
members of the incoming class
during the summer with an offer to
those who wish to pre-enroll in
them.

Each seminar will be limited to
no more than 15 first-year men. In
addition, the seminar leaders plan
to hold regular office hours in the
dormitory areas.

At the present time, each of
these seminars will be conducted by
faculty volunteers. Should the seminars
be oversubscribed, Dean
Bowers commented, additional volunteer
instructors will be sought.

Liberal Arts Seminar

Incoming first-year men taking
these seminars will be registered in
Liberal Arts Seminar 21-22,
carrying from one to three semester-hours
of credit. Usually this
seminar will be taken as an elective
course in the first year. The usual
College requirements for the degree
will make up for the remaining
approved course-load.

Kirby Cauthen, Dean of the
College, expressed his enthusiasm
about the possibilities of such a
series of seminars. He also expressed
his thanks to the faculty
members interested in teaching
these seminars as well as to the
petitioners and others who had
planned this innovation.

Heavy Discussion

He noted that the problems of
the first-year academic program
have been under much discussion in
the Curriculum Evaluation
Committee and that this suggestion
and its implementation seem to
contribute greatly to the solving of
some of the problems.

The first-year seminars will
probably be taught in the dormitory
lounges and the housing Office
will provide office space for the
faculty members teaching the
courses in the dormitories so they
will be available to advise the
residents.

David Head, Chairman of the
Department of Religious Studies,
said yesterday that many students
worked hard to see the seminar
program for first-year men adopted.

Faculty Volunteers

Mr. Head, Norman Graebner,
F. Russell Hart, and Arthur C.
Kirsch are a few of the faculty
members who have volunteered to
teach a seminar to next year's
first-year men.

Mr. Head said that many more
faculty members are needed to
teach these seminars. He suggested
that any member of the faculty
interested in offering a seminar
contact either himself, Marcus
Mallett, Mr. Cauthen, or Mr. Bowers.

In other business at the faculty
meeting, the following resolution
was adopted: "The Faculty recommends
to the administration that
highest priority be given to raising
funds from state and other sources
to support transitional program for
promising new students whose
preparation does not meet our
present standards of admission."
That resolution was presented by
the Committee on Education Policy
and the Budget.

The faculty of the College also
adopted the following resolution on
admissions, "Whereas, in all respects
the University of Virginia is
bending its efforts toward becoming
an excellent national university:
and

Not Heterogeneous

"Whereas we notice the lack of a
heterogeneous student body that
reflects the heterogeneity of our
state and nation: and

"Whereas an increasingly heterogeneous
student body results in an
increasing enrichment of the cultural
spectrum to which student body
and faculty must respond, and such
enrichment is therefore an essential
goal of a national university: and

"Whereas specifically there is not
a just proportion of black students,
some of whom are disadvantaged: and

Applaud Efforts

"Whereas we appreciate and
applaud the recent efforts of the
university administration in hiring a
full-time admissions officer who is
black.

"Now, therefore, let it be
resolved that we, the Faculty of the
College of Arts and Sciences,
support and encourage the President
of this university in his efforts
to strengthen the appeal of the
University to qualified underprivileged
students."

Fred Stokes, who is currently
serving as a part-time assistant to
the Dean of Admissions, has been
offered a full-time job in that
department.