Dormitory vs. Apartment

Living

HOW OLD IS OLD ENOUGH TO VOTE?
The Argument for the Eighteen-Y

There Aie Problems Inherent in Each System,
But the Basic Choice Is Mass or Private Liviimg

By THOMAS KABAKER and JEAN SPENCER

T 0THE INDEPENDENT at the
University there are two
choices of housing facilities: Uni-
versity housing and the off-cam-
pus apartment. University housing
generally accommodates hundreds
of students-in some cases thou-
sands-usually two to four stu-
dents live in an apartment. What
do students think of these two
types of facilities and on what do
they base their decisions? More-
over, how can the apparent "fail-
ings" of the University's dormi-
tory system be remedied, if they
can be remedied at all?
The decisions for men and wom-
en are not the same. Men may
leave the University's residence
hall system at any time after their
freshman year, while the women
generally must remain In some
sort of University-run housing
throughout their undergraduate
careers. Exceptions are made for
women in cases of financial need
or other very special instances,
but even then a woman usually.
must remain in the dormitories
until her senior year. It is fair-
ly safe to say that if the women
were put under the same rules as
the men in this case, they too
would generally choose not to re-
main in the residence hall system
after the first or second year at
the University.
MEN GENERALLY leave the
quadrangles after one year at
the University. A large percentage
of these men have pledged fra-
ternities, but many. have not. By
the end of the second year a rela-
tively small number of men are
still living in University housing,
and rarely does a male student
remain in the quads for the four
years of his undergraduate career.
F'or women, the option does not
apply. It Is a regulation that wom-
en must live in approved Univer-
sity housing-which includes dor-
mitories, sororities, co-ops and
league houses - unless granted
special permission by the Dean of
Women. There are about half as
many sororities as fraternities, and
the women's affiliate system can
accommodate proportionately less
women. If they wish to leave the
dormitory system, women may
rush, but if they are not pledged
they must stay within it. If they
prefer small group living and

either no meals provided (league
houses) or cooperative cooking
and maintenance-and if they
think they would have enough in
common with others whose prefer-
ence is such-girls may choose to
live in a league house or coop.
IF A GIRL thinks the conveni-
ences of a dormitory are not
worth the tenuous financial sav-
ing of a league house or coop (is
it really cheaper to eat out than
in a dorm? Is the time spent do-
ing chores in a cooperative worth
the money saved?), her only re-
course is to apply for apartment
permission.
Unfortunately, unless she can
prove dire need, her chances are
nil. There are two categories of
"need" recognized by the Dean of
Women's office in granting apart-
ment permissions: financial and
psychological.
Where a boy might not save'
money by moving from the quad
into an apartment, a girl quite
possibly will. The chief reason is
that girls eat less than men, and
this is a real factor in determin-
ing the cost of apartment living
for either.hAlso, because finances
figure in the case of a woman, she
may select less expensive quar-
ters. From some $700 a year for
room and board in a dorm, a girl
could go to $400 to $500 in an
apartment.
If a girl finds herself incom-
patible with residence hall living
(and the dean's office agrees) she
also has legitimate cause to be
placed elsewhere. Dormitory in-
corrigibles' arerrarely granted
apartment permissions, but if a
girl's personality is unstabilized
and her functioning damaged by
the restrictions dormitory life
placesron her,nthese factors are
weighe'd against her potential ef-
fectiveness and success in the un-
structured life of the apartment
dweller,
T IS TRULY unfortunate that
responsibility and desire to live
off-campus play so small a role
in determining whether a girl may
have an apartment. Administra-
tors explain this fact by two gov-
erning principles, one tenuous and
one unshakable. The statement
that social mores dictate that a

ByCYNT0IA NEU'
IN HIS STATE of the Union mes-
sage delivered January 7, 1954,
President Dwight D. Eisenhowe~r
urged Congress to propose a Con-
stitutional amendment to the
states establishing 18 as the legal
voting age.
In introducing his proposal,
Eisenhower stated, "For years our
citizens between the ages of 18
and 21 have, in time of peril, been
sumnioned to fight for America.
They should participate in the
political process that produces this
fateful summons."
On the same day that Eisen-
hower gave his public support to
a lowering of the voting age,
Majority Leader, Sen. William F.
Knowland (R-Calif) introduced
Senate Joint Resolution 112, "pro-
posing an amendment to the Con-
stitution of the United States to
grant to citizens of the United
States who have attained the age
of 18, the right to vote."
N ADDITION TO the "old
enough to fight, old enough to
vote equasion, supporters of the
bill listed a variety of other cases
for it.
Sen. .Hubert Humphrey (D-
Minn) voiced this, opinion, "Our
young people would be more than
mere passive voters-they could be
a catalytic and informative force
in American politics. They have
the enthusiasm and the idealism
of youth; they are fresh from our
schools and colleges, with a lively
interest in politics and social af-
fairs. And they would take on
their political responsibilities at
a time when they will be more apt
to place the national interest
above those particular interests
which they will later acquire."
"Youth ought to have a voice in
determining its own future. What
is more, youth has a definite con-
tribution to make the future of
our whole country. I hope that the
Congress, will now act to grant
the suffrage-the most essential
right of citizenship-to the youth
of America."
FORMER SEN. BLAIR Moody
(D-Mich) cited the apathy of

big age, the activity gradually les-
sened until '- at the present it isi
close to a standstill.1
Prof. John White, of the poli-
tia.science department, explain-
ed,:One way that suffrage is ex-
tended is by a feeling of injustice,
as in the case of the campaign
to give women the right to vote. At
this time there is no burning drive
among 18 year olds. If you nre 18
you will be 21 in three years and
then integrated into political life."
W HITE POINTED out that sta-
tistics have shown that there
is a lower participation in politi-
cal affairs by younger people,
which increases up to about the
age of 65 or 70 when it again
drops off.
"Younger people place other
concerns above political ones. If
they had a higher level of interest
in political matters they would
have a stronger case, but instead
they are making such life decisions
as whom to marry and what ca-
reer to follow, "and do not be-
come actively involved in politics
until later.".--
Neither of the local clubs is at
the present time handling the is-
sue, although a year ago last
November the State Federation of
Young Republicans passed a reso-
lution supporting an 18 year old
vote at a mock constitutional con-
vention.
If the youth of this state and
the nation in general are inter-
ested in an 18 year old vote, this
interest is dormant and there is
a definite possibility that the en-
tire issue will be doomed to non-
existence if action is not taken.

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The mock convention: aren't the eighteen-year-olds ready
to play their part in true conventions?

The loudest complaint about dormitory living is the food.

woman In our society be protected
and restricted is vague and, to
some, quite objectionable. But the
fact that the University has an
extensive investment in residence
hall facilities for women which
cannot be allowed to go to waste
is undeniable. Whether either the
philosophical or pragmatic reason
offered by the University holds
any water, ethically is a moot
point.
Why do students in University
housing generally -want to leave?
Some of the reasons are inherent
in the system; others are not.
The inherent reasons lie pri-
marily in the fact that the resi-
dence hall system need be some-
what regimented. It is only prac-
tical that meals must. be served
at specific hours, that there must
be such a thing as quiet hours,
and it is a financial practicality
that the average living unit must
be the room---one room in which
to study, sleep and live.,
IN THE RESIDENCE hall where
great numbers of men or wom-
en must live together in rather
close contact, it is necessary for
the individual to give up certain
rights for the good of the many.
An obvious chaos would result if
students were to eat at whatever
hour they choose, or generally
lived as they wished with little'
regard for the other residents.
But then the question arises,
"why bother?" If a man can live
in an apartment, why should he
remain in the quadrangle? An
apartment does have disadvan-
tages. It generally costs more than
the quadrangle, the men must
either cook or eat every meal out,
there is no counseling available
within his living unit, there is no
maid to clean up or bring clean
sheets every week. On the other
hand,, in an apartment there are
no regulations save statehand lo-
cal law and a few University reg-
ulations to which no one payssthe
slightest attention. A man must
register his apartment with the
University; very few do. An apart-
ment resident may choose his
menu to his taste, he may sleep
late in the morning with no noise
in -the halls, he has the advantage
of greater privacy if he wants it.
QO FAR THE TWO systems seem
even on points and rest on the
individual's preference. But there
is also the fact that after a year
or two the average person grows
tired of community living. While

is inherent in the residence hall
system.
But much of the trouble stems
from other sources. To quote from
the Michigan House Plan, "One
of the' cardinal operating princi-
ples of the Michigan residence
halls is that residents shall re-
ceive food which has very little
in common with the traditional
conception of an institutional
meal." A certain discrepancy is,
obvious.
While the complaints on the
dormitory and quadrangle food are
well-known and wide-spread, the
reason for the food's quality is
not. Some of the difficulty arises
from the fact that it is steam ta-
ble food which tends to lose its
taste, and also becomes luke-
warm. But there is more. The food
is sometimes badly prepared, and
often is served in a very unappe-
tizing manner. Most students find
the food well below the standard
that theyhave come to expect at
home, but this is to be expected
when one considers the large
amounts in whichrthe food is
cooked. And again the institution,
of a choice of entrees is a vast
help, but the main complaint is
that after a time everything tastes
the same. Canned gravy-either
beef or chicken - overcomes the
flavor of the meat over which it
is served. And the quadrangles
have shown that they can turn
out a good meal for their Christ-
mas dinners And while it may tape
the kitchen staffs more work to
turn out these special dinners, the
effort seems well worth while.
IT MUST BE SAID that the "in-
stitutional" character of food
comes from cooking and planning
on a mass scale. If the mass is
cut down, food planning can ac-
commodate more innovations and

be directed toward the wishes of
the residents.
Another complaint, and a far
more important one, is the quality
of the staffs in the residence halls.
First, let it be said that there are
many very fine staff people now
working in the residence hall sys-
tem. But again there are others.
Some staff workers, and especial-
ly many associate resident ad-
visers are not qualified for their
jobs, and especially are unable to
cope with the "problem resident."
The residence hall system does
not devote enough effort in re-
cruiting truly qualified personnel.
Many take the jobs in order to
cut expensesiand really have
little or no- interest in the wel-
fare of the students in their cor-
ridor.
SO RETURN to the problem res-
ident, theone.who doesn't
want to obey the rules, the one
who is constantly creating noise,
playing practical jokes, etc. What
is to be done with him? Often-
times nothing happens at all, for
the advisers often are not able
to cope with such a person. The
reason is that most of these ad-
visers have no training in coun-
seling ei'ther in the academic or
in the psychological fields. The
general tendency is for those who
Thomas Kabaker is the
Magazine editor of the The
Daily, an is majoring in Eng-
lish. He lived in the quad-
rangles two years and covered
IHC and the Residence Hall
Board of Governors for The
Daily. Jean Spencer is a senior
in the English Honors pro-
gram and is editorial director
of The Daily.

the public toward political issues
and said, "It seems to me that we
can well use the spark and enthus-
iasm which our young people
traditionally challenge boundless
frontiers and their new ideas, their
spirit, in conquering the road-
blocks which lie in the way of a
better tomorrow."
Rep. Kenneth B. Keating (R-
N.Y.) pointed out, "The mere fact
that people can vote at 18 in
Soviet Russia seems to be no argu-
ment that "evils of youthful vot-
ing" will follow. It makes no dif-
ference whether you are 18 or
80. Your vote doesn't count for
anything in Soviet Russia any-
way. Instead, I believe you can't
dictate to the young people the
way you can to some of the older
people. They have more indepen-
dence of judgment and are more
apt to decide things on the issues."
The proposal now is included
in, Congressional Records and

clipping files. It is not part of the
Constitution.
ARGUMENTS AGAINST Know-
land's proposal included such
items as: the requirements for
fighting are not the same as the
pre-requisites for intelligent vot-
ing and women are not drafted;
young people have not reached
maturity by 18; 18 year olds do
not realize or have sufficient
knowledge of the complexities of
political systems; youth are too.
easily swayed by idealistic sound-
ing political philosophies and that,
although persons under 21 may
be taxed, this extends even under
18, thus still making the age for
voting arbitrary.
The decision on voting age was
therefore left to the decision of
individual states, and although
for a period following the end of
the Korean war there was stimu-
lated consideration of a lower vot-

Cynthia Neu is an assistant
night editor on The Michigan
Daily and is a sophomore ma-
joring in English.

I


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VOLUME VII, No 7

March 19, 1961

styles

for

men and


Contents
DORMITORY vs. APARTMENT LIVING
By Thomas Kabaker and Jean Spencer .... ........Page Two
THE GROWTH OF COLONIAL ARCHITECTURE
By Michael Harrah,........................Page Four
THE GROWING MEMORIAL TO EDUCATION
By Caroline Dow ..............................Page Six
THE EIGHTEEN-YEAR-OLD VOTE
BvCvnthia Neu ................."......-.'...Page Seven

women,
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. . 000 cotton-ne
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STATE STREET

AT LIBERTY