College May Ease Co-Masters' Job

In an effort to free the masters spouses from some of the burdens of entertaining, the University is considering a proposal to provide additional funds to the co-and associate House masters, officials said yesterday.

A committee of masters and co-masters last month submitted a set of recommendations to Dean of the Faculty Henry Rosovsky asking that additional assistance be provided for the masters' spouses. Eliot House Master and Cabot Professor of American Literature Alan Heimert said yesterday.

The recommendations were made in response to the growing responsibilites of the associate and co-masters, Heimert said, adding that the co-masters duties have increased so much that "it is next to impossible for them to hold full-time jobs."

Parties

"With the coming of co-residency in 1971, the amount of entertaining that the masters do has expanded exponentially," Heimert said. He added that the proposals asked the College to provide the co-masters with more help, in order to lessen the amount of "scullery work" they do Heimert refused to elaborate on the exact nature of the recommendations.

Rosovsky, who could not be reached yesterday, is expected to make a decision on the recommendations before spring vacation, according to Quincy House Master David A Aloian '49.

Role Models

With the advent of co-residency in the houses, the position of associate and co-masters was created for the masters' spouses in 1971. University officials perceived that co-masters would essentially be role models and advisors for the women undergraduates who might feel uncomfortable turning to the masters for advice, Heimert said.

Before 1971, the masters' spouse had been a "relatively anonymous figure who didn't belong to the Senior Common Room or attend house functions," Heimert said.

Help

North House Co-Master Hanna Hastings said yesterday that she would be "delighted" with any help that the college could provide.

"We had a dinner last night for 28 students and 12 tutors. I spent all of Sunday cooking for the dinner because I work during the week. It would be lovely if we could have a dinner like that catered," she said.

"Any help at all would be helpful," said Mather House Co-Master Patricia Herlihy. She added that, besides entertaining, a co-master's responsibilities included bookkeeping, helping with tutor selection, and meetings with the administration.

"I have to become truly familiar with every aspect of the master's job so that he and I are essentially interchangeable parts," Herlihy added.