Newspaper Page Text
April 28. 1967
THE MERCER CLUSTER
College Costs
(Continued from page 1)
enrolling after -lune 1 will pay $4(X)
per quarter for tuition In the
future, each student will be
guaranteed that the cost of his tui
tion at the time of his enrollment
will remain the same as long as
he continues as a Mercer student
Other quarterly fees, effective in
the fall for 1967 t>8 will he the
same lor all students Room rent
and health fees will lie $10n and
the opt >nal meal ticket will la*
$134
As a result of this decision, a
student will he assured of no in
crease in tuition during his normal
tenure at Mercer Other costs will
be increased only as necessitated
b> economic conditions in the fu
ture it was explained.
The same ixilicy will be in effect
tor the Walter F George School of
1-aw The tuition for entering law
students for the 1967-68 year will
be $250 per quarter. The tuition
tor law students presently enrolled
will remain at $225. The tuition
for pharmacy students was set in
the January meeting for the
trustees at $335 per quarter.
today, have so many Friends (h
our wellbeing. To (|Uote from tl
needs answered
Political Parties At Mercer?
For the first time in many years, this year’s student
elections did not tend to give the lie to the description of
Mercer student politics given in the student handbook. The
handbook describes “gala” stimulating elections with a high
turnout of voters.
Mercer politics has a long and interesting history. At one
time back in the last century, campus political and judicial
positions were tied up in an organization called the “Student
Republic." When the future founder of the Populist party
and Chief Justice of Georgia, Tom Watson, was elected head
of the Student Republic (after a powerful and impassioned
oration) he abolished it.
In more recent times, campus politics has been tied up in
the Student Government Association. Elections at Mercer are
somewhat disorganized, being wide open to whoever comes by
to qualify. Up to 1959, there was a little more organization
due to the presence of campus political parties. Candidates
ran on the “Progressive" or the “Co-operative” tickets (with
occasional independent candidates thrown in). There have
always been various fraternity coalitions in campus politics, all
of them rather informal but at least one of them dating from
the 1880’s, but at one time there were formal party organiza
tions which presented slates of officers to Mercer voters at
election time.
The present dean of men, Joseph M. Hendricks was once
the Progressive Party’s candidate for the SGA presidency back
in the early 1950’s. A ('luster news story in April, 1953, an
nounced that sixty candidates had filed to run for office, thirty
Co-operatives, twenty-nine Progressives and one Independent.
Willard Clutchmyer (alias Bob Steed) won the Cluster editor
ship on the progressive ticket.
Political parties at Mercer disappeared in 1959 when the
Progresive Party disbanded and the Co-operatives faced a
by Bill Dayton
cal parties as a means to revive internet in campus politic
The University of Georgia Red and Black in one of th«
columns attacked the idea (they still have political parties i
Georgia) saying that apathy in elections would be better that
political organizations running everything. A Cluster coin®
this year again called for the revival of political parties g
Mercer but has apparently instilled little enthusiasm for th
idea.
Whether or not campus political parties would be a got*
idea for Mercer is an unanswered question. They were hag
once, though.
We have th<
Where are your answers?
Concerning the recent uproi large slate of independents, headed by Bev Bates. Bates won
movement", but rather a “challei the SGA presidency and announced that political parties were
There was much waters un abolished at Mercer. The reason for the abolition was “to
just a dirty, wittle puddle. By instill a more competitive spirit into campus politics.” It was
J C nceniine the April 19 Phoped that doing away with political parties would mean that
hazard than a gastric distress. Be more that two candidates would appear for each campus post,
it for years IT. two letters, do especially the more important ones.
, - However, in subsequent years, the result would seem to
ion mg- .e have been the opposite. More than once in the last eight
Haywood ixn rea \ ' , a ‘campus elections the posts of president and vice-president of
" r r the SGA have gone unopposed
Wrinkled . hir s or a Cluster column in 1964 suggested reviving the old politi-
Thank you. Bill.
The most profound statement of
"Why, there's an obscene four 1
ugly and offensive that I dare
letter. But the middle letters are,
HOW IT USED TO BE
Progressives Sweep Elections
Emory Girls
From Tlir tnu
Litieral |xilicie>
foods have boon giv<
the Emory women 1
Reprint From The CLUSTER, April 20, 1954
The Progressive Party, with Joe Hendricks heading its ticket
r\ Whirl Entorv walked off with all student government offices hut one in Tuesday's
have become th» campus election,
n LATE permissi Vote counting began early Tues-
oll he 2:00 A M
until
ends
day afternoon and the final count
Friday' and Saturdays lor upper cl was displayed at 6 a m Wednes-
12 00 PM Sundav through Tl day- The counting committee
worked almost continuously during
cl ,-, women will he allow' 1 "* I*"™ 1
time Freshmen must -sign out for
night when going to an unchaperone
Emory coeds have also alxdisi
beverages in dorms. These changes r
Conduct ' and mages-each student
I hi
system should prove I
lalion of the new rules will he mi
From The T hi Allifiut •/. Univ. <
Several 11F .students were rccen
College of the Future
(Continued from page 1)
The first plaza has already been
designed and is in the plans of the
new general classroom building
scheduled to begin construction
this spring
The campus will act as a con
necting link between the expanding
government center to the south
and the major business, financial
and shopping districts to the west.
Not only will the trained brain
power of the College be available
to nerve these functional centers
but the physical development of
the campus offers unusual oppor
tunities for enhancing them and
could serve as a catalyst for creat
ing a master plan for the entire
central city area.
From the first, the trend was
toward a Progressive victory; and
the lead was never lost as the
counting continued. The ha pv
victors promised immediate initia
tion of procedures to carry out
platform pledges,
Joe Hendricks. Woodland, took
the election from Avon Buiee. Bu
ford Hendricks is a member of
Chi Alpha Omega Ministerial Fel
lowship of which he is retired
secretary. He was training union
representative to the BSU Ex
ecutive Council this year, and has
been on the all-star football team
in intramural sports. He played for
the Ministers.
Robert Sparks. Atlanta defeated
Jack Mansfield. CartersviUe. for
the office of student body vice-
president Sparks has held a num
ber of student government offices.
He is a member of Phi Eta Sigma
freshman honor society. Blue Key
leadership honorship International
Relations Club and Alembric Club.
He has held offices in SAE fratern
ity. ROTC, and Scabbard and
Blade
Defeating Tenny Moody, Albany
was Peggy Carlisle. Macon, who is
the new secretary-treasurer of the
student body. Miss Carlisle is presi
dent of Chi Omega sorority, a
member of Mercer Choir and
Women's Student Government, and
secretary treasurer of the confer
ence and corporation committee.
She has been Phi Delta Theta
pledge sweetheart and sponsor, and
has a number of class offices.
Bill Middlebrooks, Selma. Ala.,
won over Tolly Williamson. At
lanta, for the office of freshman
advisor. Middlebrooks is the new
Reprint From The CLUSTER, April 10, 1960
Something Lacking
lv elected president of the BSU
He has held offices in his class.
Phi Eta Sigma. Ministerial As
sociation. World Mission Band,
BSU state convention, and Chi
Alpha Omega ministerial fellow
ship.
C. C. Lynch. Jr.. Rome, de
feated Dan (Tine, Toccoa. for the
editorship of the Cluster. Lynch
has held offices in Mercer Inde
pendent Men's Association. Minis
terial Association, and BSU He is
a member of Chi Alpha Omega
Running partner for Lynch.
Buddy Moore, Meridian, Miss,
won over Barbara Alford, Decatur,
for business manager of the Cluster.
Moore, a freshman this year, has
been outstanding in campus activi
ties during the brief two quarters
he has been here. He is a member
of Mercer Choir, MIMA, and Phi
Eta Sigma He is a member of the
varsity tennis team
For Cauldron editor. Barbara
Senft. Macon, defeated Freda
Cagle, Chicamauga Miss Senft is
vice-president of Kappa Delta
Epsilon and International Rela
tions Club. She has been a cheer
leader, sponsor of SAE. member
of the business staff of the Cauld
ron, and secretary of Alpha Delta
Pi sorority.
Phil Taylor. Macon, took the
business manager’s position over
Carswell Hughs. Moultrie. He is a
member of Alpha Phi Omega serv
ice fraternity, and the Interim-
temity Council. He has held
several offices in Kappa Alpha
fraternity.
Student Council Representatives
named include the following: Will
ard Baxter. Bremen, the lone Co
operative winner, senior class;
Sidney Johnson. Vidalia, junior
class; Gene Bishop, Vero Beach,
Fla. junior collage; and Mason
Olds, Cocdele, ministerial group.
Something is lacking, something is distinctly
wrong, when candidates for not only both student
publications go unopposed, but both the presidency
and vice-presidency of the Student Government
Association are in the same situation.
Once upon a time (1956), the fact that only one
candidate qualified for the presidency of the
senior class was banner headline news in the
Cluster. It is perhaps significant that today, the
whole of student elections made only a two column
headline
The question naturally pops up—what did stu
dent elections have in 1956 that they don’t have
now? The answer, as a look at any pre-1969
Cluster will show, is that back then there were
student political parties. These disappeared from
the Mercer scene in 1959 when Bev Bates was
elected SGA president. Though it probably seem
ed most reasonable at the time, it seems rather
odd now that political parties vanished in order
to “instill a more competitive spirit into campus
ixilitics”.
The main complaints against the parties seem
to have been that they generally resulted in hav
ing “only two candidates run for office" and that
they were tix> much dominated by the social
organizations.
Now that we have seen Mercer politics without
campus imlitical parties, it is apparent that their
absence has led to uncontested elections, along
with far more student a|>athy than was formerly
the case Student (loliticians just seem to gravitate
towards the social organizations, they have at
least as much influence on the elections now as
they ever did.
Back before 1959, candidates generally were
put forth by the “Ckj-operative Party*' or the
“Progressive Party" Occasionally people register
as “independent", and occasionally they won
hut most of the time, the Progressives and Co
operatives dominated campus politics.
A few students with yet-familiar names who
held SGA offices under the party system were
Cluster editor Willard Clutchmyer (alias Bob
Steed) and SGA president Joe Hendricks (alias
Dean of Men). Both incidentally were “Progres
sives”.
With campus politics dominated by political
parties. Mercer would be assured of at least two
candidates for each office (a definite improve
ment over the present situation). Good rousing
campaigns of the aort that come only when backed
by such “political machines" would certainly
generate more interest in student government, an
interest is the only cure for our present apathy.
The university definitely needs the revival of po
litical parties, let us hope that they will be re
vived. and that |>erhaps some more school spirit
will lie revived with them.
-V
1
Reprint From The CLUSTER, March 31, 1960
Spring Elections
It's getting about that time again: spring elections are in the aia
This time, however, the atmosphere is slightly different: A*
as anyone knows, there will be no large posters with bright letters pr
claiming the virtues of an entire slate of candidates running under
collective party name.
This may or may not be u good thing.
In a sense, the 1960 spring elections may prove to be the mo*
crucial yet held under the student government system. The outcoaa
in the long-range sense, will depend on whether individual student*
without party urging, will take the initiative to qualify for atud^
offices. By Wednesday, there were few rumblings of interest heist
heard around the campus. Let’s hope that SGA president Bst«'
Wednesday chapel speech stirred some to action that had previoudf
been unmoved.
By the time this editorial is printed, the results will have been
If, however, only a small number of students take the initiative I
register, the absence of party politics could spell at least a temporal!
doom for the SGA in general. We do not believe that there are met
who would like to see this happen.
It is up to the individual student this year, whether he is run nid
for office or not, to take a lively interest in the politic* this
should bring.
The situation poses a challenge to all Mercerians to see and ace
the responsibility for good student government. There is one th
Worse than no government, and that is bad government.