Tradition unbroken: admitting women

By our opinion

Forty-eight years ago, a Santa Clara tradition was shattered. The Santa Clara broke the news March 22, 1961 in a Wednesday morning special edition. Women would be admitted to the university that fall, California's first Catholic institution of higher learning to do so.

"There were some who were very much against it, but there were others, obviously, who liked it," laughed Paul Caro, editor in chief in 1961, when he talked with us this week.

A Jesuit phoned Caro '62 at 7 p.m. that Tuesday. He remembers thinking, "We have to get a paper out the next day." So he called the managing editor and news editor and said, "'I'll meet you in a half an hour.' And we did it."

The infamous headline, "TRADITION SHATTERED," marked "a major event in the history of the university after more than 100 years," said Caro. It was printed in what was called war type, used for announcing the start of a war or the election of a president, according to Stephen Kent '63 managing editor at the time.

It seems naïve this was such a huge deal in the sixties, which emphasizes how far we have come. What seemed unthinkable is now the norm with a student population of 53 percent women according to Santa Clara's Fall 2008 Student Profile.

Kent's 1961 editorial, poignantly written in the middle of the night, expressed, "Think of a few years from now with the first woman ASUSC President. She will give speeches urging us to support the Bronco women's volleyball team. NCAA regionals that year, of course." He continued, "The Santa Clara eventually may have a female editor. Rue the day of lace borders and pink ink. I'm humbly resigned to it."

This year, for only the second time in history, all eight Chartered Student Organizations, including The Santa Clara are run by all female heads, at least half with female seconds-in-command as well. Santa Clara's women's volleyball team made it to the second round of the NCAA Tournament and The Santa Clara is still without pink ink or lace.

"It's kind of hard to understand for people in this century -- the significance or perhaps the silliness," said Kent. "The attitude the next year when it actually happened -- it was sort of like reading about school segregation, like Southern colleges at the time. Guys who started dating co-eds were kind of shunned by some people. Kind of ridiculous."

Kent remembered Ted Macken, S.J., telling the students this was good. He recalled Macken saying, "You guys are living an unreal life. You guys walking around during the week in sweats shave maybe twice a week. At the girls' college, Suzy has curlers in her hair."

Men and women went to classes during the week, went out together on the weekend and then back to their separate lives, Kent said.

Caro ended up thinking the co-educational system was wonderful, claiming it helped academics. "It created competition in the classroom between girls and guys. Guys were not that much interested in sports, but 'I gotta get a better grade than she does.'"

With such a strong female presence on campus, through club leaders, athletics and our first female Rhodes Scholar, Santa Clara has obviously proven the benefits of a co-educational university.

As Iowa and Vermont legalizing gay marriage this week, we wonder what the next 50 years will bring for equality and civil rights. Maybe our children will also look back on these things as ridiculous.