University of Virginia Library

View From Mountain Lake

A Biological Center perched on the top of
a lofty mountain in southwestern Virginia
might seen an unlikely place for a
confrontation of sorts between student
activists and the Administration, faculty and
alumni, but last weekend Mountain Lake was
once again the scene for the University's
version of a Summit Conference for the third
straight year. Amid ferns, chilly winds, and
assorted wildlife a hundred concerned
students, administrators, alumni, and faculty
members gathered to discuss and debate the
present and future of the University.

Not unlike the two previous conferences,
this one was at times characterized by some
heated words and feelings of distrust,
especially on the side of some of the student
leaders. Certainly one of the conference's
main purposes was fulfilled: all involved got
to know and understand each other much
better than they had before it all began.
Everyone discovered that there were
personalities, emotions, and characters that
lurked beneath the connotations of each title
an individual held. Students realized the
Administration is composed of distinct
human beings who even possess a sense of
humor. Administrators, alumni, and faculty
members saw that students are not all the
same, in fact there are great differences in
personality and philosophy even among those
who attended the conference.

There was one characteristic which was
common to all: a genuine love for the
University and a deep concern that it meets
and conquers the complex problems it now
faces. As a result of a series of seminars and
open meetings on the gamut of problems
facing the University at present and in the
future, the group concluded that four areas of
concern are tantamount.

Housing: First-yearmen living in
closet-sized study rooms in the cold basement
of the McCormick Road Houses can attest to
the fact that the University is facing an acute
housing crisis. Last spring many
upperclassmen were squeezed out of
dormitory rooms by our mushrooming
enrollment. With the arrival of full
coeducation, the situation has become even
more strained. Those at Mountain Lake
realized that the unique quality of
community spirit on the Grounds could be
forever lost if students continue to scatter
across three counties losing touch and feeling
for their fellows and for their school along the
way. Virginia stands at the crossroads of
building more prison-type dormitories or
striking out on a bold and imaginative path
toward a residential college system which
could preserve our spirit of community.

Black students: The substantive progress
made by the University in the past two years
in this tense and sensitive area is
commendable, yet there is tremendous work
to still be done. The conferees discussed
various recruitment practices and policies
which could increase the influx of black
students to the Grounds more rapidly.

They also realized, after some emotional
statements by the attending black students,
that the problem does not end by merely
getting more black faces in the first year class.
Discrimination and bigotry still exist here in
ample quantities. The life of a black student
living in the dormitories may not always be a
pleasant one as a result. Tremendous effort
and understanding by both blacks and whites
is the only answer, and while the answer is
easily understood, means of attaining it are
not.

Communication: Open dialogue at the
Conference provided the participants with
answers that previously had been impossible
to find. All sorts of information,
explanations, and official policies came to the
surface during the weekend. A student who
was convinced that the Administration was
indifferent to Virginia's most pressing
dilemmas learned that there are many
activities occurring to help alleviate the
situation - activities of which he had never
heard until then. We believe that the
Conference dispelled many fears and feelings
of mistrust which had resulted from
misunderstandings an; misinformation. The
conferees agreed that there must be more
communication and dialogue among the
participants throughout the year, not just
annually at Mountain Lake.

Student Self-Government: This discussion
was sparked as the result of the "Strike"
activities of last May and the Board of
Visitors promulgation of the Eleven Points of
Student Conduct. There was agreement that
the possibility of students not only enforcing
and adjudicating disciplinary regulations, but
also fashioning their own code of conduct
deserves serious study and consideration.

The University has an opportunity to excel
where others have fallen short. The
aforementioned critical areas need immediate
attention by not only the participants at
Mountain Lake, but all members of the
University community. We must cut the path
through these complexities to solutions which
will further Virginia along the road of
excellence. If we administrators, alumni,
faculty, and students do not remain true to
the pursuance of answers to these questions -
if we slip back into our niches ignoring our
agreement at Mountain Lake to dedicate our
time and energies to these solutions - then
we shall have failed both the University and
ourselves.

Although these are not the only difficult
areas that the University must meet if it is to
continue in excellence, they are certainly four
of the most immediate problems.

For a while some of the individuals lost
sight of their contemporaries back in
Charlottesville as they tried to take the whole
burden of solving these problems on their
own shoulders. Wisely, we think, President
Shannon reminded the group that all
members of the University must participate in
these discussions and decisions which will
guide Virginia's destiny. We hope the fears
which were so evident at Mountain Lake in
both student and administrative circles will
give way to more trust and that all interested
in bettering the University will act in good
faith.