"a waste of education"

This letter to the editor of the Weekly is much more civil than the one in yesterday's post:

"Dear Editor,

It has been quite some time since anyone has commented on Chapel. Here is a suggestion.

If Chapel is to remain compulsory for students, would it not be more advantageous to hear from a wider variety of speakers? For the College to present any program to the students that utilizes such a small portion of the potential available is a compromise and a waste of education for both faculty and students. Chapel time should be used to present a variety of ideas in many disciplines. Students should have an equal opportunity to participate.

Some of the talks have become rather stagnant. If Chapel is considered worthwhile, and it could be, let the students of Ursinus hear something worthwhile.

Signed,
Barry Feierman (1967)
Charlotte Frost (1968)

(In the Mail, page 3, Ursinus Weekly, VOl LXVI, No. 6, February 15, 1967)

What I find interesting here is that Feierman and Frost's letter echoes the sentiments of the letter from "the Refractory." However, this pair had a much more effective tone and was able to express positive ideas for change in the chapel program. Many of the ideas expressed in this letter were actually implemented a few years after publication with the weekly forum program.

It is also worth noting that in the same issue of the Weekly this announcement was published:

"Thomas Dean, President of the Men’s Student Government Association, and Diana Van Dam, President of the Women’s Student Government Association, announced jointly that following this spring vacation there will be a new form in the chapel programs.

The required attendance regulation will be continued on Mondays of each week for freshmen and sophomores and on Tuesdays for Juniors and Seniors.

There will be a voluntary worship service on Wednesdays at the customary chapel hour in a place yet to be selected.

The Councils’ presidents stated that the new plan is the result of a period of serious study by several members of the faculty and by both formal and informal groups of students."
(Chapel Changes, page 1, Ursinus Weekly, VOl LXVI, No. 6, February 15, 1967)

Although no major overhauls are alluded to or announced here, it is clear that in addition to reducing the number of days students were required to be in chapel, the major change here is a total secularization of the chapel proceedings. Although I'm sure that the faculty and staff of the College had something in mind for the slated changes that were to come about post-vacation time, is it possible that Feierman and Frost's letter had a hand in encouraging the higher-ups to try to use chapel time as tool for education? Once again I am relying on the faculty minutes and (possibly) some interviews to clear this one up for me.

Fun Fact: Charlotte Frost and Barry Feierman ended up getting married. Oh Ursinus...