Official Predicts Rise In Next Freshman Class

The College may admit a considerably enlarged Freshman Class next fall, according to one high Administration official. "I cannot help but feel that next year's Freshman class will be larger than the present one," the official said yesterday. "It might even include an extra hundred students."

But the Dean of Freshman expressed surprise at hearing this proposal. "I cannot foresee and I would deplore, an increase of 100 freshmen in one fell swoop," Dean von Stade asserted yesterday.

It is true, he said, that there will be more Yard rooms available next year. "Under present plans, Freshmen will move into most of Wigglesworth next fall, as well as Thayer North, which is new being renovated. This gives us around 170 more spaces than this year."

However, von Stade pointed out, there are at present about 60 "forced commuters" (students who would prefer to live in the Yard, but were accepted on the condition that they live out). "Forced commuting is not a healthy situation," he noted, "and we should be able to eliminate it next year."

In addition, von Stade said, a small amount of "deconversion" may take place in the Yard (changing some suites from quads to triples, for example). But what will consume most space is a systematic rehabilitation of Freshman dorms, an entry at a time. "We have high hopes of doing a major job this summer and another next fall," von Stade explained, "although the entire project depends on final approval by the Corporation."

The Dean of Admissions and Scholarships also said yesterday he is unaware of any plan to increase radically the size of the next Freshman class. "We are working on the assumption that there will be no increase in size," Dean Bender asserted. However, he emphasized that Dean Bundy, not his Committee, is "the final authority on the matter."

Bender suggested that if there is to be any significant rise in the number of Freshmen admitted, "the Faculty, even though it is not legally responsible, should be consulted. There is strong feeling in the Faculty on this question of expansion." He noted that, if the present size is retained, the "nasty problem of forced commuters will be solved."