Skidmore News Volume Thirty SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y., THURSDAY, OCTOBER 14, 1954 Number Three Segregation Viewed By NSA Students At Annual Meeting Lynne Ireland Relates Events Discussed at Iowa Congress This summer the United States National Student Association Congress was attended by Barbara Dillon, Georgia Goddard, and Lynne Ireland. The Congress held in Ames, Iowa, at the Iowa State College, lasted from August 22 until the 31. The main theme of the conference was the Responsibilities of Freedom. Perhaps this very theme in itself can give one a small glimpse into the atmosphere that pervaded most of the meetings. The emphasis on the responsibilities of today’s students, instead of their rights, opened whole new fields of discussion. The main theme itself was broken down into four commissions and then they in turn were divided into several subcommissions. Bobbie attended the subcommission on Leadership Training. This was extremely beneficial to Skidmore as many of the ideas and opinions that were brought forth were used in last week’s Leadership Training Program. Georgia attended the subcommission on Judicial Systems. Here, more than in any other meeting, Skidmore offered a great deal. Many colleges were extremely impressed by our Honor System and its effectiveness on campus. Two colleges in particular were so interested in our system that they planned to suggest a similar program to their own student bodies. I attended the Academic Freedom subcommission. This was one of the most important problems discussed at the Congress. Many schools, particularly the large universities, had reason to feel that their academic freedom had been infringed upon, either by the faculty and administration of the college itself or by the various Senate investigating committees. An excellent resolution was passed by the entire Congress as N.S.A.’s stand on Academic Freedom. Another question that received a great deal of attention was the problem of segregation. As many of the member schools are from the South, a number of varying opinions on the subject were discussed. The first resolution brought before the Congress on segregation was a very controversial one. After much discussion, a separate committee was formed to draw up another resolution and report back at the next plenary session. The committee itself was very diverse in nature, composed of both white and negro students from the North and South, from the East and West. After almost twenty six hours of continuous deliberation they brought back to the body probably the most outstanding resolution of the entire Congress. Not only did it present an excellent stand on the issue, but offered several suggestions on the implementation of the Supreme Court decision. The resolution was passed by all but four votes, and strangely enough these votes came from the northern regions. N.S.A.’s stand received wide acclaim and was commended by several national publications for its fine quality. The Congress also provided its delegates with the opportunity to meet students from every state in the union plus a large number of students from foreign countries. Discussions lasted late into the night, and it was through these very informal get-togethers (Continued on Page 4, Col. 1) Philharmonic Pianists Give Concert Here Famed Musicians Claim Diversified Backgrounds The members of the famed Philharmonic Quartet have all had extensive musical backgrounds. New York-born ADA KOPETZ studied at the Julliard Graduate School with James Friskin and in California with Edward Steuermann. She has played solo and ensemble concerts throughout the country, and appeared in Carnegie and Town Halls in New York. She has been soloist with the New York Symphony and in Radio City Music Hall, and has visited Manila and Hong Kong playing concertos with the Manila Orchestra and recitals in both cities. MORELAND KORTKAMP was born in Alton, Ill., but was brought up in California where she began her piano studies at the age of nine. A few years later she won the Southern California Allied Arts Contest for two years running. She won a six-year scholarship at the Julliard Graduate School where she studied with Josef and Rosina Lhevinne. After graduation she toured North Africa and Italy as a member of the first concert group to be sent overseas, and later she returned to the Fox Hole Ballet. She has made tours of many European countries and in the United States has made many television and recital appearances. EMMETT VOKES was a student of Anton Rovinsky in his native New Jersey, of Frances Munn at Julliard, and also won the Frank Damrosch Award. He has appeared in recital and with orchestra in the East and Midwest. HERBERT ROGERS studied at Juilliard with Sascha Gorodnitzki. Previously he worked with Paul van Katwijk in his native Texas, and with Olga Samaroff at the Philadelphia Conservatory. He has been soloist with the symphony orchestras of Houston, Dallas, S.M.U., Wichita Falls and Juilliard, and won the famous Dealey Award in Dallas, the International Recording Prize of the National Guild of Piano Teachers, and other competitions. The official musical arranger for the Quartet is Moritz Bom-hard, at present the director of the Kentucky Opera Association in Louisville. He is also in charge of the production of the contemporary operas commissioned and performed under terms of the recent large Ford Foundation Grant to the Louisville Orchestra. He was formerly conductor of the Princeton University Orchestra and Glee Club and director of the New Lyric Stages. In addition to his arrangements for the Quartet, Mr. Bomhard is a composer in his own right, having to his credit two symphonies, a suite for strings, several sonatas and the score to a Sean O’Casey play, “Red Roses for Me”. [photograph] The Members of the Philharmonic Piano Quartet Celebrated Quartet Entertains Campus With Ideal Program On Wednesday, October 20, Skidmore will play host to the Philharmonic Piano Quartet, a group which has won acclaim throughout the country. This all-American group of brilliant artists, each a piano virtuoso, has captivated the public. In especially prepared, colorfully varied programs their forty fabulous fingers at four pianos range through a repertoire which includes classics and light music, arrangements of moderns and masters. The Philharmonic Piano Quartet consists of Ada Kopetz, Moreland Kortkamp, Emmett Vokes and Herbert Rogers. The arrangements are made by composer Moritz Bomhard. All four pianists received their training in this country; all have given successful individual concerts and all studied at the Julliard School of Music. In addition to its recitals, the Quartet has played at New York’s Lewisohn Stadium, Denver’s Red Rock and for three weeks at New York’s Roxy Theatre. Last season they appeared with the Buffalo Philharmonic and Oklahoma City Symphony Orchestras. The Quartet travels by car, and their four Baldwin grand pianos precede them for each concert. In the words of the New York Times, they are a “virtuoso ensemble.” The program for Wednesday will be divided into four parts. It will include such pieces as the overture to “The Marriage of Figero”, "Liebestraum", “Rhapsody in Blue”, excerpts from “The Nutcracker Ballet” and many others. NEWS VIEWS Latest Court Decision Provokes Controversy by Lynn Schroeder May 17, 1954, marked an historic decision by the Supreme Court. Racial segregation in public schools was ruled illegal. The Court felt that schools could never be “separate but equal”, for the intangibles cannot be measured. A definite feeling of inferiority was given to the separated colored. This September some districts, notably Baltimore and Washington, started the difficult process of integration in the schools. Most of the South, however, is waiting for the Supreme Court to decide on a formal plan for uniting the schools. President Eisenhower, true to his campaign promises, has ordered Washington, D. C., to lead the way. Desegregation will be accomplished there by fall 1955. Violent Opposition In Mississippi As expected, some loud voices of protest have been heard. Perhaps the most violent opposition comes from Mississippi. The State Representatives have voted to abolish public schools. All children will have their tuitions to private institutions paid by the state. Citizens councils have also been formed to block integration by economic and social means. The leader of one such group remarked, “We’re not Klu Kuxers but if this doesn’t work, a group like the Klan will surely rise.” Is It Too Soon? Some claim that it is too soon to start mixing the school children. But is it? Almost a hundred years have passed since the Civil War and the negro of today demands equality. Admittedly, traditional prejudices are hard to change but perhaps children educated together will be slow to acquire the bigotry of their parents. A law has been established and therefore must be obeyed. The feelings for outright defiance of the Federal Government by a state just do not exist anymore. Desegregation will require patience and tact. Dissenters must be dealt with quickly and firmly. This minority must be made to realize what most of us know, that segregation is now a settled issue. The United States has assumed leadership in the free world, and it is about time this country started practicing what we represent in theory. Today, when the United States so desperately needs the friendship of the colored peoples of the world, we must at least strive for equality in our own country. E. Pardon Designs Gifts For Royalty A Skidmore faculty member, Earl B. Pardon, designed a silver and enamel bowl for the Queen of England and a cigar box for Winston Churchill, as gifts from the Ancient and Honorable Artillery of Boston, commissioned through Towle Silversmiths. Mr. Pardon, a graduate of Memphis Academy of Art, is working with Towle Silversmiths in Newburyport, Mass., during his year’s leave of absence from the Skidmore art faculty. Perfected New Technique In addition to designing the two pieces, Mr. Pardon worked on the bowl, using a new technique he has been perfecting. The holes are filled with transparent enamel. Also, the cloissione on the top of the cigar box is taken from one of his paintings, and the execution of the enamel is his. According to the Newburyport (Mass.) Daily News: “The workmanship which Towle put into the bowl and silver cigar box for Queen Elizabeth and Sir Winston Churchill drew the admiration of Capt. Thomas J. Carty of the Ancient and Honorable Artillery Company of Massachusetts and two of his associates when they called at the local silver shop to pick up the two gifts.” Towle Is Proud “Towle President Charles C. Withers, in making the presentation to Capt. Carty, said that the local company was very proud of these pieces and had great pleasure in making them. ‘We hope (Continued on Page 2, Col. 1) Committee Chooses Group of Volumes For College Library At its last meeting the Student Book Committee again chose a group of volumes to be purchased for the library for recreational reading. This group meets monthly to discuss and choose current books on a variety of topics which the library ordinarily would not buy. Two representatives of each of the classes are members. This year’s committee is composed of Irene Rich, ’55, Patty Walton, ’55, Jane Chilson, ’56, Averill Dayton, ’56, Bee Edgcomb, ’57, and Ada Vapnek, ’57. The freshmen members are in the process of selection. Selections for this month include a biography, an autobiography, a book of short stories, an historical novel and two best sellers. The Remarkable Mr. Jerome by Anita Leslie is a biography of Winston Churchill’s American grandfather while The Memoirs of Aga Khan is an account of the life of the well-known Indian ruler. Hester Lilly and Twelve Short Stories by Elizabeth Taylor and a novel of a love story which changed the course of. history, Katherine by Anya Seton are two other selections. The best sellers A Time to Live and a Time to Die by Erich Maria Remarque and another copy of A Fable by William Faulkner which has proved to be such a popular request were also chosen. The committee is at all times ready to receive suggestions for new or old titles which the student body feels should be added to the library for recreational reading.