Women at Duke

The women wore raincoats over their shorts when coming back from physical education classes, obeyed 11 p.m. curfews and received male visitors in the parlor. And if they wanted to go on a date with a boy, they would have to sign in and out.

Seventy years after the creation of the Woman's College and thirty years after its merger with the previously all-male Trinity College, the institution's alumnae will gather this weekend to celebrate their cherished experience of stellar academics, leadership opportunities and a nurturing community of friends. The reunion, entitled, "The Woman's College, 1930-1972: A Legacy of Excellence and Leadership" is sponsored by the Duke Alumni Association and invites women up to the last class admitted in 1972.

Though women had been taking classes with the men at Trinity College since 1892, the Woman's College was established in 1930 as a distinct institution. Students of both genders went to class together, but the women lived on East Campus and had their own organizations and administrative system.

The college soon became a magnet for those women interested in higher education at a research university and began establishing an environment of high academic excellence.

"Within a few years it became clear... that [the college] had strong national appeal," said Robert Durden, a professor emeritus of history who came to Duke in 1952. "Women who wanted a serious education could come to the Woman's College, get a first class education and enjoy the fact that they were in a woman's college. Many women felt they had the best of both worlds."

Students saw the college as a rare institution offering opportunities to women when few were available.

"I chose to come to Duke because what I wanted was a feeling of a small woman's college [and] the educational advantage of a large university," said Kathy Schenley, Woman's College '69. "At that time, that's what Duke was, and that's how it felt."

The college's reputation resulted in many more applicants than there was room for. Those who made it past the admissions committee raised the level of academic excellence and even began to surpass the men.

"From the day we entered the college, there was a feeling of confidence that you could do anything. It was very much a nurturing environment for women and one [in which] we were being pushed as well," Haltom said.

Ruth Ross, Woman's College '68, past president of the alumni association and member of the steering committee, remembers the support of the professors and administration. "They identified strengths and talents that we had individually and asked us to take those and run with them--sometimes that was professionally, sometimes they were personal developments," she said.

Many alumnae also treasured the support from friends and a sense of community that stemmed from the women living in the same dorm all four years.

"At that time we didn't have a TV in our room, there was one TV in the parlor. If there were presidential debates or big news items like a president's talk... we would have everyone in the commons room watching it together," Haltom said. "There was a great sense of community in each resident hall and on East Campus."

The qualities of an all-female college which women had previously celebrated came under fire as the civil rights movement of the 1960s began to seize campuses across the nation. While the students never before had problems following the strict regulations and curfews, they now began to doubt authority on even larger issues--such as being a single sex college.

"[We] realized, how come men don't have these rules? They can have women in their rooms but we can't have [men] in ours--the double standard jumped up and hit us in the face," Schenley said.

William Griffith, former vice president for student affairs who came to Duke in 1950, said many students in the women's student government were pressuring the university to make a change. "Many parents liked the [regulations] and thought them an asset, but many women thought them arrestive."

Ross explained the alumnae felt the merger would result in a loss of the supporting atmosphere and leadership roles so evident in the Woman's College.

"We always protect what we understand and experience--and the woman's experience was such a strong nurturing and inviting environment for women," she said. "We as a group in the Woman's College were extremely loyal to one another.... [We] applauded each other's successes and encouraged one another. I think it's an important aspect of what life was like at Duke--and Women's College alums are still that way."