The Anti-Bifurcation Act at Dickinson College prevented women from wearing "bifurcated garments, elongated or exposed shirt-tails or any other freakish costumes" when not in the privacy of their own rooms. This was to prevent "unfavorable public criticism, directed against both the women of the college and the college itself."  This Act was to be in effect from the time of its enactment (1944) until "an indefinite, far-future date."

In 1955, the Curriculum Committee sent out an Alumni Questionnaire for the graduates from the years 1885-1957. Out of the 7,000 questionnaires that were sent out, only 1,050 or about 15% were returned. The President of the College, William W. Edel, asked for favorable or unfavorable responses, based on the varied experiences of all the alumni of the college, in order to get the most truthful evidence on what needs to be done for the college's improvement.

For female Dickinsonians, this article tries to help students manage their studies while involving themselves in an extra-curricular, as well as participating in the social side of campus life. Sunday, however, remains for church and relaxing.

For mental and physical comfort, it reads:

a. A minimum of 8 hours a day of concentrated work

b. A minimum of 1 hour a day of outdoor exercise

c. A minimuim of 1 hour a day or rest or reading

d. A minimum of 8 hours a night of sleep.

Telephone usage was only allowed during specified times during the day. The only phone in Metzger Hall was located in the Dean of Women's office.

Like the permission form for missing meals, this document lists the reasons for permission and the ways to get permission to miss a meal.

PERMISSION, Reason for: 1) We want to be able to locate students at once.

2) We want to be able to protect you against mistaken reports'

3) We want to avoid unnecessary work.

4) We want to avoid wasting your ration points.

NOTE: Permission to be absent from meals is also permission for you to be somewhere else. It is not merely a way of accounting for an empty place in the dining room.

This packet provides information about etiquette for female Dickinsonians in all aspects of dining, from invitations and thank yous, who pays etc.,  to the physical act of eating itself. The graphic here demonstrates how women should act when ordering at a hotel:

 

"Concerning Automobiles" lists the rules and regulations governing female students and transportation. No women who lives in a dorm on campus was permitted to keep a car in Carlisle unless speical permission was granted. This was to ensure their safety and prevent automobile accidents involving students. However, female students were allowed to ride in automobiles during the day without permission if the distance was short and the trip was for less than an hour.

Like the permission forms for an automobile and absences from meals, these two slips provided information for the College/ dormitory regarding its female students' whereabouts and plans for Saturday. It required information regarding places and times of social programs and the evening meal, and who would be escorting that woman. The evening slip also provides spaces for listing movies location and dance locations. This ensured the safety of female Dickinsonians.

Any absence from a class, college event, or even meal required notification or a pass for an excuse. The College required its female students to provide information about their location if they could not make College or dormitory functions. In an era without cell phones, knowledge regarding female students' welfare and location were considered critical in protecting its students.

Since the College deemed automobiles unnecessary for female students who lived in the dormitories, permission was necessary for students who wished to keep an automobile on campus for a special reason for a short period of time. This slip was required to receive permission to keep an automobile on campus, providing that the information provided proved to the college that a car was necessary.

In response to a ruling by the Inter-Fraternity Council, women were encouraged to boycott the quad area, which at this time was home to the fraternities.  In their ruling, the IFC stated that it was restricting the "social participation within the Quad to fraternity residents, women and freshmen," thus excluding non-Greek men.  Posters, such as this one, were placed around campus, urging women to boycott the quad due to the IFC's unfair ruling.

This slip granted permission for female students to go on an automobile trip. It required the name of the student, the times of departure and return to campus, the reason for the trip and where the trip was to end, and who would be in the car with the student. If the purpose of the trip was not deemed necessary, permission would not be granted.

This card was created for women who needed or wished to leave campus for a certain period of time. It required information about the trip: the day and hour of departure and arrival back on campus, whom was to be visited, how the student would be traveling, and a disclaimer and signature signed by her parents agreeing that should an accident take place, the College would not be held accountable once the student left campus. Dean Meredith collected and approved these notices.

This pamphlet highlights the many rules governing Dickinson students regarding attendance, including special rules and penalties. Class could only be missed for chapel or medical necessities, either due to illness or prearranged for appointments. Demerits were received for skipped classes and being late, even for Physical Education classes. Every unexcused absense was worth 5 demerits, but that was doubled if it was the day before or following a holiday break.

Circa 1984, this constitution for the Equality for Females student organization outlines its mission of creating a community that better understands current feminist issues.

This Progress Reports includes changes and plans to change College policy regarding female students. Most notably is the mention of the 1973 Spring semester and the success of the movements to "rescind the 'sex quota,' by action of the Board of Trustees, so that henceforth Dickinson College will strive for an approximate ratio of 1:1 in admissions of male and female students; and to omit singing at College functions the last verse of the Alma Mater, with its references to 'men' and 'sons.'"

"Recommendations and Report on the Status of Women in the Academic Profession at Dickinson College" documents the information from a survey done from 1962 to 1972, which included a study of student enrollment during those years. In these ten years, female enrollment increased from 33.3 % to 43.2 %. On the other hand, male enrollment had increased as well. The downside to this information was that there was an increase of female students, but no increase in female faculty.

Data from a survey done from 1962 to 1972 about Dickinson College faculty revealed information about female faculty in the "Recommendations and Report on the Status of Women in the Academic Profession at Dickinson College" document. They discovered some interesting results, both positive and negative. Some negative aspects found from the survey were that women were underrepresented on the faculty, in the upper professional ranks and on the standing committees of the faculty.

In this report, the possibility of a Women's Center is mentioned. Opponents believed that this would be discrimination against men. While no center existed at the time, the Commission garnered its own bulletin board in the basement of Old West. , had an "open house" for its members and others, luncheons in HUB siderooms, and stressed the importance of getting all the Service Support Personnel who were women to be a part of the Commission.

Shannon Sullivan '09, writes a column for the March 2006 Dickinsonian on the perceptions of the Women's Studies Major. Being a Women's Studies Major, Shannon discusses how many people feel the major is "completely unnecessary."  Since this major is still very "new" in terms of most college majors, people often forget how important this major is to understanding our culture.