The College is gearing up to celebrate the 25th anniversary of coeducation at Dartmouth.
"It is important to celebrate and recognize the formal decision to coeducate the College and to look at how that decision has shaped Dartmouth since then," said Director of the Women's Resource Center Giavanna Munafo, who chairs the six committees overseeing the plans for the celebration.
The celebration's principal periods of activity will be the fall of 1996, which marks the anniversary of the decision to coeducate, the fall of 1997, the anniversary of the first coed freshman class and the summer of 1997, Munafo said. The summer programs will be geared to alumni.
Munafo said the main goals of this commemoration are "to acknowledge where we've been, understand were we are now and articulate a vision for where we need to go in terms of coeducation at Dartmouth."
"We hope to invite graduates back to the College as women to talk about their experiences here at Dartmouth," Munafo said.
Munafo said she is hoping the College will bring in commencement speakers, honorary degree recipients and Montgomery fellows "who would enrich our exploration of these topics during that time period."
In addition to events planned specifically for the anniversary, Munafo said she hopes to link other campus programs, like a Dartmouth Film Society series and a display at the Hood Museum of Art, to the theme of coeducation.
One of the six planning subcommittees is examining the possibility of issuing a commemorative item to note the anniversary, Munafo said.
"We would like there to be some kind of product coming out of this," Munafo said.
"We're exploring the possibility of putting together a commemorative video and/or volume to mark the 25th anniversary of coeducation," Munafo said.
"There are a variety of video materials on campus having to do with coeducation that could be used as the basis for something that could be expanded on," Munafo said.
Dean of Residential Life Mary Turco, who is also a women's studies professor, is on the planning committee for the archival project.
Turco said some possibilities for this project include a documentary of the 25th anniversary festivities, a documentary of the history of the College since coeducation and an oral history project in collaboration with Jane Caroll's current history of College presidents John Kemeny and Andrew McLaughlin, which would focus on the issues surrounding coeducation.
Other ideas include a history of the period "written by a well-known historian or journalist" or a book of essays "written by specific individuals invited to place their thoughts on paper, because they might have special reflections on the period," Turco said.
The committee's plans are still far from finalized, and they hope to incorporate ideas from students and others.
"We're really interested in hearing from people all over the College to see what kind of ideas they have," Munafo said.
Munafo said the anniversary will commemorate all the women in the College's history.
"One thing that's really important to us is that we're going to recognize that there were women here at the College before the fall of '72," Munafo said. "We don't want people to think were focusing on that one class."
