In an insert in the Dickinson Women's Newsletter entitled CURRENT COURSES, classes that seem to have some emphasis on women's studies are listed for interested students. Courses include, Introduction to American Studies, Women as a Symbol, Women in Scandanavian Literature, Psychology and Religion, Contemporary People of Latin America, Population, and Relations Between Men and Women.
Assistant professor of physical education, Katherine Barber, reveals her feelings about the practice of co-ed physical education classes in an interview. Barber says that the idea is effective; “girls work harder to not bomb out in front of the guys [and] the men show up more.â€Â She also says that the situation is more interesting to teach in and that the program that is in use, is making athletics become appreciated. However, Barber does mention surviving inequalities; men are provided with practice clothes and more liberty with athletic facilities while women are not. Yet all in all, i
A female graduate of the class of 1964 discusses how athletics were treated at Dickinson in her "Women as Leaders" survey response. While at college, the student participated in Intramural Basketball and Volleyball, as well as Field Hockey. She remarked that "very limited emphasis" was placed on women's sports but that Dickinson in general always emphasized academics rather than athletics.
A female Dickinson graduate comments in the "Women as Leaders" survey about the academic caliber of the students at Dickinson. She had always felt that the women in her classes and the classes around hers, "were superior to the men in talent." However, the "men dominated the visible offices easily" and they outnumbered the women, such as in her graduating class there were 65-70 women out of 200 or more students. The college did attract a "high calibre of women" but she never had an overwhelmingly high regard for the "academic prowess of the men."
In her memoir recounting her time at Dickinson, Elizabeth Low remembered a studious female student. According to Low, "She did not take gym, nor join us on walks. Her time was spent in study. I never saw her at a game, an evening reception, nor a contest. She hesitated to go with us when we had a group picture taken on account of the time it would consume, but finally consented." In the end, the student Low described became a prominent missionary in India.
A report released by Dickinson on June 10, 1961 showed the distribution of grades by class, gender, and greek organization. According to the report, the 348 women on campus maintained an overall average of 2.81, while the 721 men had an grade average of 2.35. Seniors maintained the highest average with a 2.82, while freshman had the lowest, a 2.21. Sui Generis was the greek organization with the highest average, a 3.0, and they were closely by Phi Mu and Pi Beta Phi with 2.97 and 2.89 respectively.
The Faculty Minutes for the meeting of January 6, 1942 detailed the requirements and standards set for girls who wanted to enter into the Nurses Aides course on a voluntary basis. They had to prove, among other requirements, that they had the grade point average, leisure time, and permission necessary to complete the course. They also needed to complete the entire course.
Frances Vuilleumier (Class of 1924) claims in an interview that the college viewed men and women equally in the 1920s. She believes faculty like female students because they performed better in the classroom than their male colleagues. Frances recalls completing the same academic work as male students did.