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SPELMAN SPOTLIGHT
October, 1965
Declare War On Mediocrity!
Frieda Williamson
Paralleling President Johnson in his brilliant effort urging
Americans to wage war on poverty, Dr. Benjamin E. Mays urged
the freshmen of Morehouse and Spelman colleges to declare war
on mediocrity. The occasion was the 26th annual Morehouse-
Spelman worship service for freshmen, at which Dr. Mays, in
his usual eloquent manner, delivered the sermon. He, as he put
it, “had the brass and the gall enough” to make his sermon a
treatise on how to become successful. This-call for war on med
iocrity was the last and, in my opinion, most significant of the
points which he outlined as steps toward achieving success.
Too long it has been our tendency to remain perfectly satis
fied as long as we’re not classified below average. To long also
it has been our tendency to seek praise the moment we’re classi
fied a fractional bit above the mean. In general, too long have we
been concerned with where our level of achievement ranks with
those of others, rather than how our level of achievement com
pares with our own maximum potential.
An essential tactic in this war is to reject the established
systems of classification. What is mediocre for one by these sys
tems can be the maximum possibility of another. The standard
for each individual must be set by that individual himself and
is as different as that individual is different.
Don’t think that because you’re an above “C”, you’re win
ning the war on academic mediocrity. With even an “A” average,
you may be defeated by mediocroty if you maintain that average
without the maximum effort. Your standards are set within you
yourself. Hence, your strongest competitor in this race is your
self and your surest strategy is to strive to outdo yourself.
Freshmen, you have yet a clean slate; thus you have the
perfect opportunity to write success on it, lest you become trap
ped in the stiffling atmosphere of satisfaction. For, “the life of
dissatisfaction is the only worthwhile life.”
Upperclassmen, as long as your slate has not yet been filled,
there is still possibility — the possibility of changing, correcting
and excelling.
Closing as Dr. Mays did, 1 shall borrow from Louis Gou-
temier’s “Keep Me Still Unsatisfied”:
Ever insurgent let me be
Make me more daring than devout;
From sleek contentment keep me free,
And fill me with a bouyant doubt.
Open my eyes to visions girt
With beauty and with wonder lit,
But let me always see the dirt
And all that spawn and die in it.
From compromise and things half done,
Keep me with storm and stubborn pride;
And when at last the battle is won,
God, keep me still unsatisfied.
mmsmmmmi
Frieda E. Williamson Editor-in-Chief
Patricia A. King Associate Editor
Henrietta Turnquest Business Manager
Andrea Williams News Editor
Janice Holloway, Brenda Greene,
Melba Davis Feature Editors
Cynthia Smith Literary Editor
Carol Webb Fashion Editor
Carolyn Clark Exchange Edtior
Janice Mills Photographer
Margaret Mills Cartoonist
Marjorie Rich, Jean Richardson Typists
Marilyn Wilson, Carolyn Reynolds
Barbara Varner, Janice Mills, Cheryl Birchette
Delores Parker, Linda Palmore Lay-out
Melody McDowell, Angela King
Semester Exchange
Juanita Price
As the day slowly approach
ed that would mark my trans
cendence into another, perhaps
entirely different, college com
munity, Elmira College, the ex
cruciating pangs of ambival
ence, uncertainty, and anxiety
erupted with dynamic impact.
Perhaps, the question that en
gendered the greatest degree of
solicitude was, would I have the
tripod prerequisites of pa
tience, stamina, and resilience
in coping with any problema
tical aspect of the semester that
I might encounter? Yet, had I
been cognizant of the glorious
and enriching experiences that
were futuristic, I suspect, the
shattering inhibitions and mixed
emotions that were then viable
would have been almost nil.
Similarly, as the semester
progressed, the realization dawn
ed upon me that much of the
motivation for the exchange
program, in a broad sense, and
the sensitivities that have thus
far gone into its implementation
derive invariably from the in
dividual participant’s efforts in
executing the basic principle on
which the exchange program
was formulated—the cultural ex
change of ideas, ideologies, and
value systems.
Though my semester of ma
triculation at Elmira College,
Elmira, New York, was short
by virtue of the time element,
the experiences derived thereof
were both significant and far-
reaching. Perhaps, it was the
mere day-to-day and ordinary
contacts with students from a
diversified array of cultural, re
ligious, and social backgrounds
that gave me the greatest insight
into the various aspects of stu
dent life.
In many ways college life, in
whatever part of the country,
has marked similarities, primar
ily by virtue of the fact that
education is the paramount pur
pose for the existence of the in
stitution, and student aspira
tions are basically directed to
ward similar goals. Ergo, El
mira College largely reflects
many of the value premises that
are an integral part of any oth
er all-girls' institution. The
Honors System, however, is a
phenomenal and pertinent phase
in both the academic and social
program of Elmira. Indubitably,
the provisions and underlying
principles inherent in such a
system have been successfully
implemented and have conse
quently engendered a feeling of
individual responsibility and in
tegrity.
Newsbits
Dr. William B. LeFlore of the Biology Department, recent
ly completed requirements for his Doctorate at the University of
Southern California.
* * * * *
Dr. Melvin Drimmer, a member of the Spelman History
Department since 1963, recently received his Doctorate at the
University of Rochester.
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An Art Tea was held in Abby Aldrich Rockefeller Hall on
September 24. Guest of honor was Mr. McNeil, Artist-in-resi
dence. The purpose of the tea was to allow the residents to be
come acquainted with the dormitory’s art collection and to select
the picture or pictures which would become part of their room
furnishings for the year.
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The Dean of Women’s Office would like to remind the stu
dent body that any announcements made must be posted on of
ficial bullentin board space rather than on doors, door frames,
windows, or trees. Requests for space should be made to the Dean
of Women's Office.
Team Support
Patricia King
Fall is here. We see leaves falling, squirrels gathering nuts,
birds migrating, and we feel that delicious crispness of autumn
in the air. The campuses are bustling with activity, so different
from the leisured atmosphere of past summer days. No time for
playing—that is, with one exception. Our Morehouse brothers
play the first game of the 1965 Football Season October 8. No,
I'm not begging you to attend, but if you have an interest in
the game, go. My concern is with your behavior while there.
Let’s begin with this question "Have you ever been a cheer
leader?” From experience, I can assure you it’s a horrible feel
ing to exhaust your vocal capacities on a crowd of stonefaced
spectaters. It really undermines the morale of the whole pep
squad, eventually making the job, which should be pleasurable,
a tedious bore. If this happens to cheerleaders, just think of its
impact on the players, who work so much harder. Let me remind
you that neither position is mandatory. Some of your sisters
and brothers have volunteered their services to provide enter
tainment for you. So why should we make them feel unappreciat
ed? It's no secret that spectators at Morehouse games have been
more interested in the activities of the crowd than in the game.
This season let’s make this untrue.
The old adage “The best team wins” has been accepted sole
ly on the basis of team performance. But how can a team do its
best unsupported? So let's cheer, cheer, cheer! You’ll be warmer,
and Morehouse might win some games.