University of Virginia Library

Only Classroom Contact

Because all the first-year girls are
in the new dormitories, their
non-classroom contact is with all
first-year men, and a few counselors.
In addition, the first-year men
in the so-called "ghettos" hardly
ever see a girl in their area. "I get
catcalls every time I walk through
Emmet," commented one girl.

Another expressed dissatisfaction
with knowing only
first-year men. "The first-year boys
are aggressive enough to come up
and meet you only when they are
drunk or stoned."

The housing has its advantages,
too. The girls in the coed dormitories
are particularly pleased with
their situation. "The guys downstairs
are friendly, helpful, and protective.
They carry up packages and
dissuade obnoxious visitors."

However, with the suite-type
floors, the girls have a hard time
meeting other girls. "We generally
avoid sitting together in class or
going around in boards, for fear of
scaring the guys off." She smiled.

Thus, a girl will often sit alone
at a lunch table in one of the
cafeterias. It is very rare to see a
boy go up to her and say: "Do you
mind if I sit with you?"

Because it is difficult for girls to
meet boys whom they did not meet
in the first two weeks of school or
whom they already knew before
they came, many of the first-year
girls are dateless on weekends.

One girl said "I was lucky in
that I met someone at the beginning
and we became really close.
Otherwise, I probably wouldn't be
dating much at all."