|
It has been 31 years since CMC first admitted women. One half of the College's history is now as a co-ed institution. Our first alumnae have probably just turned fifty. Looking back and looking forward, did we make a difference?
Since its inception, CMC has been a college that has been all about transformation. When soldiers came home from WWII with GI bill money, CMC was poised to embrace these young men and help them transition to civilian life. Just over three decades later, the College set about to become a co-educational institution. While this was clearly a controversial decision, the College needed to draw from a larger pool of applicants to remain relevant in a modern world and economically viable. The thinking was not unique; other all male colleges during this time became co-ed.
I don't know what CMC was like before women were admitted, but I can guess. Based on the remaining traditions and unfortunate literature in the early '80s it was clear that incorporating women on the CMC campus was a challenge in many ways. I recall that in 1983 several dorms did not have co-ed populations. There were not enough women enrolled to fill floors or sections of the dorms to create single sex bathroom use. The dinner menus at Collins Hall were typically something like "lasagna, macaroni and cheese, or shepherd's pie." If you wanted a lighter meal, you went to Scripps.
There were other social experiments during that time. Beckett was the "socialist dorm" allowed to manage and spend the entire budget of the dorm's upkeep in exchange for the do-it-yourself labor of the students. I don't remember the dorm being very clean, but they had a great built-in bar for entertainment.
With so much history as a co-ed institution is admitting women still an issue? I can offer anecdotal evidence that it is. At the reunion in May 2006, President Gann was asked during dinner, "Why did the college ever go co-ed?" At the King Tut exhibit in 2005, several older alumni made the distinction that they went to "Claremont Men's College," not "Claremont McKenna College." This is incredibly unfortunate, because Claremont McKenna College is fabulous. The achievements of students and alumni would put these individuals in good company. We should all be proud of the CMC legacy.
The gender balance is much more equal now both from applicants and admitted students. I think if we looked closely at attrition, we would see fewer women leaving because they don't like the environment. I really missed several women that left after their first year or two. It was difficult then. The challenge was not just to be as good as any other student, but to prove that you deserved to be there. There were few tenured female professors. If your major was in either of two most popular departments, econ or political science, there were no female tenured faculty.
Early on we were definitely living in the "frat zone." Eating at Collins was not the only evidence. Neither was limited population of co-ed living. I would imagine that the per capita dorm damage bill has dropped dramatically over the years.
I just returned from New York where I met with students participating in the Financial Economics networking trip. Women were not evenly represented, but those there report that they are enjoying CMC. Other research institutes actually have focused on the contribution of women and the challenges they manage post graduation. The Berger Institute is hosting a conference on women this spring.
CMC women will never have an identical opportunity landscape as their male counterparts. We have more choices to make because some of our choices are mutually exclusive. It may require us to be more creative in our careers, or make tough choices when we have children or aging parents.
For the women who pioneered the co-educational transition at CMC during the first decade, I think we have made a difference to all of the women there now. The College is stronger, more diverse, and better situated to positively impact more male and female students. The nostalgic alumni that regret the change might reconsider when asked if their daughters deserve the fine education available at CMC.
Back to Table of Contents
|
