Newspaper Page Text
September 1981
Spelman Spotlight
Page S
1!
DIMENSIONS TO SPELMAN
j
|,
■W ■
ilia ;
■ill/
- ; »e i
!f wief t
::4)
® ' : i( [.
«'?u father
«y
■ :ioft.
j
: w s
s iMy
■Ml 3
I J tC 2
(rtoidtj t
Dr. Stewart: Yes. This center will
be right on campus with an office
in Giles and the first project of
the center is to put into place a
women’s studies minor so along
with an international studies
minor, we will have a women's
studies minor.
Spotlight: This minor will not be
specifically Black women’s
studies?
Dr. Stewart: Well, it’s women’s
studies, but it’s certainly going to
be very much oriented to the
Black woman.
Spotlight: These sure sound like
great plans!
Stewart: Well, it’s reality. They’re
working on it right now.
Spotlight: Dr. Stewart, this next
question refers to the interest
that you had back in 76 during
all the turmoil surrounding your
appointment about the
relationship that existed
between Black males and Black
females. I think you felt some
concerns about these turmoils
and why it was that way. I'm
trying to connect this to
Spelman’s relationship to
Morehouse if there is a connec
tion and I’m curious as to what
the president of Spelman thinks
about the relationship between
Spelman and Morehouse.
Dr. Stewart: A very complicated
relationship!
Spotlight: Do you think it’s a
healthy relationship or typical of
Black female and Black male
relationships in general?
Dr. Stewart: Well, I don't know if
it’s typical because the
relationship of the two schools is
so unique. There's nothing
typical about Spelman or
Morehouse. They’re two unique
institutions. The relationship,
though, I find a fascinating one,
because, clearly there is tremen
dous good feeling and repoire
and caring between the men of
Morehouse and the women of
Spelman. But, there's a great deal
of competitiveness and in some
instances, almost a love/hate
relationship. But, we're just so
tied there very closely. It is clear
to me that Spelman women are
setting a good, strong pace for
Morehouse men both
academically and socially and
that’s good. But I do feel a sense
of the one hand of closeness and
on the other hand-competition.
Spotlight: I was wondering if
something of that nature on the
personal level concerning the
two schools was apparent to the
administration.
Dr. Stewart: Oh, I feel very
strongly about that.
Spotlight: Next, I'd like to discuss
with you your view of Spelman as
it functions in today’s society. As
Spelman enters into its 101st year
of existence, in reflection, do
you think Spelman hasdonewell
in adapting to a changing en
vironment and maintaining itself
in the current society while
keeping its tradition?
Dr. Stewart: I think for the most
part, yes... but at the same time,
change around us is so rapid, that
we need to do some catching up.
I think we need to do some
catching up academically for
example in the new areas of
communications, new areas of
computer science, and the new
areas of physics. Spelman is now
creating a whole new series of
new minor programs. A new
program in organizational
management is one such minor.
There are now far more oppor
tunities for Black women in
corporate work and the business
world.
As far as the intellectual arena,
we want to keep the college a
very strong liberal arts college.
We don’t want to lean too far the
other way. This new manage
ment program would be within
the economics curriculum and
would be focused on very much
preparing Black women for
senior level career opportunities
in the business world. Most of
the students who take the minor
will hopefully go on, if not
immediately, very soon to an
MBA program.
Spotlight: So, Spelman is keep
ing its Liberal Arts base and
maintaining its uniqueness in
that sense, yet the minors would
allow Spelman to compete with
other universities and colleges.
Dr. Stewart: Exactly. And we’re
hoping to create a new minor in
communications. It will not be
just a carbon copy of, for exam
ple, the Clark program. It will be
very much based on the liberal
arts-political science, drama,
English ....
Spelman women
are setting a
good, strong
pace for
Morehouse Men...
Spotlight: My last question to
you, Dr. Stewart, is what projec
tions do you have for Spelman?
Where do you see her headed as
an institution?
Dr. Stewart: I see Spelman in the
next five years or so emerging as
one of the strongest liberal arts
colleges in America. I really
mean that.
But in this period of time we
need to make our mark
academically through symbols.
By that I mean we need to
establish, for example, a Phi Beta
Kappa. This is sort of a sore point,
for me anyway. It’s unfortunate
that Morehouse got a Phi Beta
Kappa Chapter and Spelman
didn't. Of course, there's a lot of
history there, but we should
]have moved when Morehouse
moved. If we push hard, it’s
certainly not too late . . . we’re
building up the number of Phi
Beta Kappa members on our
faculty. One of the vehicles for
preparing for this too is the
creation of a senior honors
society which we started and is
two years old. These are the
“symbols” of Spelman’s
academic aspirations and stan
dards.
So, the emphasis my first five
years, frankly, has been shoring
up the college’s financial base.
The emphasis the next few years,
or the next part of my ad
ministration, will be shoring up
the academic, because in the
final analysis, Black women in
this society will only be able to
achieve if and only in they are
able to compete for jobs, places
in medical schools, etc. with
graduates from the best schools
1 in the country. And that is my
mission.
Spotlight: Many Spelmanites
have done well thus far.
Dr. Stewart: Yes, Spelmanites
have done well. They’ve done
very well.
Interview by:
Bridgett M. Davis
Photography by:
Whitney Young