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SPELMAN SPOTLIGHT
April, 1976
Spelman: A Senior’s Perspective
By Debbi Newton
Editor
“Sometimes I wounder about
the forces here-- What they do
Id these women-what they have
College life has often
produced significant patterns
far social change throughout
world history. And Spelman
Cbllege -situated among the
loft of southern black higher
education...has not gone un
sown in the fabric of positive
American social development.
To a large extent, the activism
cf the Spelman student was
initiated during the late fifties
and the early, so-called “tur
bulent” sixties.
To sketch a portrait of the
The responsibilities of the
financial aid officer increase in
quantity and complexity each
year. Administrative guidelines
for federal aid programs change
from year to year. The new
state and federal programs
which are being introduced
hcreasingly, and each slightly
different administrative and
reporting procedures all result
in greater demand for available
student aid funds--a situation
which is magnified even further
by the rapid increased cost of
living and the rising cost of
higher education.
The net effect of these
developments is an indication
that the financial aid officer has
become a “social servant” and
less sisible as a college ad-
rrinistrator. The federal fun
ding patter, the amount of aid
kinds received from outside
sources, and the effectiveness
with which they are distributed
is of vital importance to the
college. Various reports are
generated directly from
statistics maintained in the
financial aid office regarding
operational reports that provide
information on policy matters,
tuition, recruitment, scholar
ships, etc.
It has not been too long ago
that financial aid for students
Fellow Spelmanites:
It’s that time of year again,
the ole man will be celebrating
his 63rd birthday on April 30th,
aid we don’t want him to think
that we have forgotten that it is
that time of year once again.
Naturally, we are talking
iiout Dr. D. Spelman’s favorite
"Honky” and he really is. Since
coming to Spelman in 1965,
there is no one among the
faculty at Spelman that is more
loved and respected than “D”.
He always has a pleasant
smile for everyone on Monday
mornings. Always ready to help
a student out, always availble
for a conference, and the
number of students who sign up
for all his courses is certainly an
indication of how popular he is
with the students.
And don’t be fooled by the
done to me, I feel myself
transforming, and I like it.”
Debbi Newton
women at Spelman during the
sixities, one is in need of colors
that respond to the urgencies of
that period, e The civil rights
movement, positive action
programs, and the Algerian
struggle for independence are
indicative of those social hues.
In the arts, the songs of
Spelman women were being
sung by Odetta, John Coltrane,
Qnette Coleman, John O.
Killens, James Baldwind, Duke
ftarson, Stan Getz, and
Thelonious Monk to note a few.
By Marva Tanner
Director, Financial Aid
came almost exclusively from
institutional sources. Since
1958, we have evidenced a gren<
expansion in student aid funds
across the board. The National
Defense Student Loan Program,
the National Direct Student
Loan Program, the College
Work-Study Program, the
Educational Opportunity Grant,
the Guaranteed Student Loan
Program, the Basic Educational
Opportunity Grants Program,
and a variety of state assistance
programs have combined to
provide vastly increased
amounts of financial assistance
for students. Financials aid
officers, therefore, have more
resources at their disposal tc
help students finance their
education. Thus, in theory, the
“frustration level” of a goal-
oriented aid officer could be
g-eatly reduced.
In addition to the aid programs
administered by the College,
the financial aid officer is also
charged with the responsibility
of certifying, verifying and
identifying applicants for such
as food stamps, fee waivers,
letters of employment and
enrollment. Each applicant and
outside program seems to bring
unique cases, and in many
situations, require immediate
response.
white hair and beard, he has
been seen on Fridays and
Saturdays “doing his thing” on
the dance floor of several local
disco’s. As Dr. D says:“Just
cause there’s snow on the
reof.don’t mean there’s no fire
in the furnace." And watching
his cut across campus some
morning, you will agree he may
have something there.
And so this the reason for
this letter, we want you to know
how much we love you...“D”
and a Happy, Happy Birthday.
And remember what they say on
T.V....“You're not getting any
older, \ou’re getting better.“We
hope
Some Of Your Freshmen.
Unsigned
That was a period of white
exchange on the campus. The
mood was integration and
Smith, Wellesley, Sarah
Lawrence, and Barnard were
among those colleges that
played a significant role in that
mood.
The student movement at
Spelman during the sixties
witnessed the acquistion of an
assertive voice. A grow th which
was a distinct transition from
the comparatively static, almost
servile temperament of the early
fifties. During the sixities,
student demands began
eliciting favorable responses
from the college administration.
Administrative directives began
metamorphosing into open
policies concerning student life
and student curriculum ; n-
Historically, financial aid was
distributed by a committee or a
dean who devoted a limited
amount of time each year to the
activity. Today most accredited
four-year institutions of higher
education have a full-time aid
director who heads his own
office, is responsible for the
administration of grants, loans,
and student employment
pitograms and reports to the
president or a dean...(Nash,
1969). Today the financial aid
officer is a formal part of the
administrative bureaucracy in
institutions of higher education
and consequently, the' policies
a-e derived from the broader
purpose and goals of the in
stitution and the performance
affects the overall effectiveness
cf the college served.
Inasmuch as the primary
purpose of an aid program is to
help students finance their
education, the financial aid
office is thus a student-centered
administrative function with the
basic premise that each student
diould be helped as an in
dividual with consideration
gven to her unique situation
and circumstances. Thus, the
daily routine of individual
student aid decisions tends to
deal with emphatic concern for
financial problems of individual
students and as a result pushing
into the background such im
portant activities as planning for
new programs, fund projection,
evaluation of present programs
and policies and research.
Ideally, the management cycle
begins with a planning function
occurring in the fall after the
first term has begun. At this
time objectives of the office are
reviewed to coincide with
planned changes. Financial aid
funds are projected, the ap
plication for federal funds is
submitted to HEW. State and
Gollege budgets are estimated
and any staffing needs are
identified . so that necessary
plans can start. At the
beginning of the second
semester, the review of ap
plications for financial aid for
the next academic year usually
begins. During the spring,
upperclass awards, and ap
plications front prospective
terests.
Today, Spelman students
remain a vital part of the college
community development. They
remain assertive, and to a large
ectent, that assertiveness is
based upon the legacies
inherited from the sixties.
However, unkile the sixties,
there are no sit-in demon
strations. There are no counter
culture sentiments to aid the
Spelman woman of the
seventies in ascertaining the
needs of the community that
ecists beyond the ebony wialls
of the college. This means that
h the seventies, Spelman
women are faced with for-
milating an identity which
exists independent of a well-
defined campus movement. It
means that she oftentimes has
to educate herself, or accept the
consequences of receiving little
cr no education of practical
value. And it means she is
evolving a continuously critial
analysis of her environment and
cf herself.
In many ways, the
challenge encountered by the
Spelman woman of today is far
mure overwhelming than that
effected during the 1960’s. That
challenge is a measure of how
well the Spelman woman knows
herself and how far she is
willing to tread in order that she
Question: What Qualities
Should the Next President ol
Spelman College Possess?
Mary Conklin: “She should be
able to relate and communicate
with the students and provide
leadership and be a qualified
administrator.”
Margaret Lee: "She should
be a black female with an ex
pansive history in black higher
education. She should be a
woman who could function as a
representative of Spelman
Cbllege to the world as well as
being sensitive to the needs of
the Spelman family.”
Roberta Dawson: “The
next president of Spelman
Gillege should be well rounded,
objective, for the most part
liberal and influential to the
college as a whole. She should
dso strive to acquaint herself
with the student body.”
Debbi Story: “She should
be well informed and interested
in higher -education for black
women."
Cheryl Lewis: “She should
be well informed and interested
in the tradition of Spelman
College. She should be ready
aid able to cope with the
females here and the problems
which ensue with black females.
The best way to do this is to
exeert her leadership abilities as
a black female.”
Diane Williams: “The next
president of Spelman College
Jiould know the traditions and
may examine her potential.
With less resyrictions on both
her social and academic life, she
is becomeing oriented toward
^xmtaneous decision-making in
a fast moving world. And in the
process, she is learning that the
wrong decision oftentimes is
better than no decision at all.
“They are young. They are
black. They are women. How
common the human
denominator.”
There are portraits and
then there are portrayals. There
are beginnings and then there
are renditions. The intellect of
the Spelman woman is all there
remains today concerning the
myths of her image. Intertwined
in that image are young women
prepared to render vital support
to the human community. Her’s
b an intellect that responds also
to the needs of the physical
aivironment and understands
that the one does not exist
rdependent of the other.
Needless to say, it is the
legacies of the past that dictate
the present-day character of
Spelman women, who are
assertive withou being abrasive.
Who are leaders capable of
recognizing the time to follow.
Aid who, beyond all else, are
responsive and responsible,
human beings.
be able to fulfill the needs of
Spelman women.”
Pam Reed: “I feel that the
next president of Spelman
Cbllege should be a black
female who has a strong sense
cf black culture and black
identity, I also feel that the next
president would have as her
goals a better quality of life for
herself and all black people.”
Denny Mills: “I feel the
time has come for Spelman
Cbllege to be headed by a black
woman. She should possess a
irong sense of black identity as
well as black awareness in order
to feel the needs of the students.
She should have a high
educational background, have
been exposed to black higher
education institutions and
should actively fulfill her
position as president.”
Regina Jennings Spelman
Alumna: “I believe that the next
president of Spelman College
diould have compassion for
black women and other human
beings, that the future president
should be knowledgeable of the
qualities, the efforts, and the
strengths of black institutions
namely Spelman College. In
essence, the future president of
Spelman College should be a
replica of the positive ideals and
gaals of blackness.”
Mary Burney: "She
should be versatile in her skills
aid abilities to communicate
with various types of per
sonalities. She must have a wide
Continued on page 9
Managing Financial Aid
Speak Out
Sylvia Wofford