Architect Claims Radcliffe Needs More Dormitories for Residents

Radcliffe College needs additional dormitory facilities for approximately 300 students to house properly the 1,200 girls now in residence, according to a study just completed by the firm of Campbell and Aldrich, architects and planners.

In a report listing and evaluating the present uses of all Radcliffe property, Nelson W. Aldrich '34 urged Radcliffe to build additional dorms on a scale not previously contemplated. President Bunting said yesterday that the college had originally planned only one more dormitory, to accommodate 120 students.

Aldrich's report criticized the facilities available in rented off-campus buildings and noted that several of the older brick dormitories now house up to twice as many students as they were designed for.

A long-range planning committee, chaired by President Bunting, will spend the next five months studying the report and collecting ideas from students, faculty, alumnae, and trustees. The group expects to present formal recommendations for improving the college's physical plant to the Radcliffe Council some time in February. After the Council has reviewed the Committee's suggestions, Aldrich and his staff will prepare a flexible plan to guide the future development of the college.

Student Ideas Sought

At the moment, Mrs. Bunting commented, Radcliffe will concentrate on providing adequate facilities for the present enrollment. "Only after that is done, do we feel we can consider the question of expansion," she explained.

"We now want students' ideas as to the ideal dormitory arrangements from the educational point of view," Mrs. Bunting stressed.

Overcrowding in the library will be among the problems studied by the Committee, President Bunting remarked. "Although we will undoubtedly need to expand the library," she said, "the question is whether to expand it in the Radcliffe Yard or establish a unit in the Quadrangle."