Bunting Announces Radcliffe Plans To Start House System Next Fall

Radcliffe College will begin a sweeping revision of its housing system next Fall when the dormitory quadrangle is re-organized into four living units similar to the Harvard Houses, President Mary I. Bunting announced yesterday.

The plan calls for building a new dormitory in the near future and re-grouping the present halls into three units. Each Radcliffe House would include approximately 275 undergraduates and 25 Faculty affiliates.

"The move into a House system of our own is a very important one," President Bunting told the undergraduates at an open meeting of the Student Government Association. Although "we can't do it right away," she stressed that "Radcliffe values what the House system represents and can move toward it speedily."

Next year, Comotock, Moors, and Holmes Hall will combine to form North House; Briggs, Barnard, and Bertram, South House; and Cabot, Whitman, Eliot, and the new co-operatives, East House. The off-campus houses, eventually to be replaced by the new dorm, probably will form West House.

"An essential ingredient of the House system is the chance to talk with a diversity of people," President Bunting said, noting that "you are anxious for more informal contact with the Faculty and graduate students." Calling such contact one of the best features of the Harvard Houses, she declared, "For Radcliffe to say we're not going to try for it would be absolutely inexcusable."

Beginning next year two Faculty members will act as freshman advisers in each of the three units which will house freshmen. President Bunting suggested that each House could form a committee to work with Faculty members to develop the House's potentialities.

The President saw a wide range of possibilities for House-oriented activities, such as tutorial groups, seminars, dramatic productions, musical organizations, and athletic teams. She expected each House to invite visiting scholars to give lectures and participate in informal discussions with students.

The system "calls for a year of very careful planning before we leap into the bricks-and-mortar stage," President Bunting cautioned. On June 29 and 30 the College will sponsor a conference of approximately 15 anthropologists, sociologists, industrial designers, and architects to discuss plans for the living units.

Selected students will be invited to attend the conference. In addition, the President called for all undergraduates to offer their opinions and ideas on the House system.

Along with the revision of its housing system, the College is planning to build a library in the Quadrangle area. The building would include increased facilities for study and tutorial.

The Radcliffe Student Government Association will also undergo extensive changes next year, Emily R. Otis '62, President of the SGA, announced yesterday. Members are currently researching the problem of SGA's function in relation to the new House system, she said, urging undergaduates to present suggestions for consideration at the semi-annual Cedar Hill Conference next September.