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THE BATTALION
THURSDAY, FEB. 26, 1976
Women at AirM have come a long way
1 OCf j/etfrs
By DON MIDDLETON
and
JOHN ADAMS
As Middleton sits at the old
typewriter and pecks out this week’s
installment it is actually last Thurs
day. And it is undoubtedly the most
beautiful day of the year to date. The
temperature is eighty degrees, there
is a slight breeze blowing and the
recent showers have caused all the
grass to turn green and the dust to
settle.
Fifty years ago a day like this
might have been the signal for a
spontaneous trip down to the Brazos
for the first swim of the year. Classes
seem to hold no power of attraction
when the first signs of spring fever
begin to show up.
But this is 1976, and let’s face it,
who in their right mind would head
for the river when the weather turns
warm and the halter tops wake from
their winter naps.
Women at Texas. A&M. They’ve
come a long way since Professor
Charles Hutson’s daughter Ethel
became the first woman to attend
classes here in 1895. Ethel took
courses in French and helped put
out the Olio, the first college publi
cation.
Ethel’s younger sisters, identical
twins Sophie and Mary, followed in
her footsteps by enrolling in 1899.
They subsequently became the first
women to complete four years at
A&M.
The Hutson twins studied, of~all
things. Civil Engineering. And
while Sophie chose the life of a
mother and housewife over that of a
professional woman, Mary went on
to become a design engineer with a
New Orleans company.
The twins were the center of at
tention for quite some time in Aggie-
land. Their boyfriends gave each of
them a cadet uniform which Mama
Hutson altered to fit their feminine
frames and the girls took part in
every aspect of college life except
drill.
When the Texas Legislature
created the Texas A&M College in
1871, it was more or less taken for
granted that it wovdd be a school exc
lusively for men. But being as iso
lated as it turned out to be, it proved
inconvenient, if not sometimes im
possible, for the daughters of the fa
culty to attend school anywhere else.
Probably nobody thought too
much about it at time, but when the
Hutson sisters became regulars
around the campus, they started a
trend that would eventually lead to
trouble for the college officials.
It became increasingly popular for
girls to enroll in classes at College
Station, so much so that the legisla
ture sought a way to stem the tide.
In the grand tradition of our state
lawmakers, the College of Industrial
Arts for Women was established to
channel the women up to Denton,
and away from the boys at A&M.
Years before, the legislature had
done the same for blacks by estab
lishing a separate college for them at
Prairie View.
But that move didn’t appear to do
much for the problem. By 1925 there
were no less than thirty, yes thirty,
women attending A&M under the
status of “special student.” And
worse than that, Evelyn Crawford
became the first woman to receive a
degree that very same year.
Drastic circumstances call for
drastic action. So on September 3,
1925 the Board of Directors passed a
resolution prohibiting women from
attending any classes at Texas A&M
College.
Well, that little gem didn’t make
many girls happy. But the real
clincher came in 1933 when several
local women, including daughters of
faculty members tried to enroll in fall
classes and were flatly denied admis-
tptejB.
m
i ^
The next thing President T. O.
Walton and the Board of Directors
knew, they were standing before the
judge in the 85th District Court
while attorneys for the girls in ques
tion petitioned for admission of their
clients.
In January of 1934 Judge W.C.
Davis made his final ruling in the
case. He stated that the Morrill Act
made no reference to the elligibility
of women to attend the land-grant
colleges, and therefore it was up to
the various state governments to set
and enforce entrance requirements.
Petitioned denied, case dismis
sed.
Judge Davis’ ruling held for the
next 25 years. It wasn’t until March
3, 1952 that State Senator William T.
Moore dared to breach the subject
again by introducing a resolution
which called for the admission of
women once again to A&M. It was
Moore’s opinion that the college had
been stagnating since World War I,
partly due to the closed-door policy
on women.
The Hutson twins, Sophie and Mary, in their modified
cadet-gray uniforms. The twins completed a course in
Civil Engineering at TA&MC at the age of 17. Courtesy
University Archives.
The resolution was adopted
unanimously, but 11 years passed
before any positive action was taken
on the Senate’s recommendation.
On April 27, 1963 the Board of
Directors approved a policy of li
mited admission of women to the eol-
S lege. The new rules allowed women-
to attend the graduate college and
the veterinary medicine school, as
well as granting admission to the
wives and daughters of faculty mem
bers and students.
SLOUCH
Jim Earle
Somehow I would like it better if it would emphasize the basketball team only!’
Che Battalion
Opinions expressed in The Battalion are itiose of the editor or
of the writer of the article and are not necessarily those of the
university administration or the Board of Regents. The Battal
ion is a non-profit, self-supporting enterprise operated by stu
dents as a university and community newspaper. Editorial
policy is determined by the editor.
Represented nationally by National Educational Advertising Services, Inc., New
York City, Chicago and Los Angeles.
The Battalion, a student newspaper at Texas A&M, is published in College'
Station, Texas, daily except Saturday, Sunday, Monday, and holiday periods. Sep
tember through May, and once a-week during summer school.
Mail subscriptions are $16.75 per semester; $33.25 per school year; $35.00 per full
’ year. All subscriptions subject to 5% sales tax. Advertising rate furnished on request.
.Address: The Battalion, Room 217, Services Building, College Station,
'Texas 77843.
LETTERS POLICY
Letters to the editor should not exceed 300 words and are
subject to being cut to that length or less if longer. The editorial
staff reserves the right to edit such letters and does not guaran
tee to publish any letter. Each letter must be signed, show the
address of the writer and list a telephone number for verifica
tion.
The Associated Press is entitled exclusively to the use for reproduction of all news
dispatched credited to it or not otherwise credited in the paper and local news of
spontaneous origin published herein. Rights of reproduction of all other matter
herein are also reserved.
Second-Class postage paid at College Station, Texas.
Address correspondence to Listen Up, The Battalion, Room
217, Sdt-vices Building, College Station, Texas 77843.
Members of the Student Publications Board are: Bob G. Rogers, Chairman; Dr.
Gary Halter; Dr. John Hanna; Roger P. Miller; Dr. Clinton A. Phillips, Jeff Dunn,
Tom Dawsey and Jerri Ward.
Director of Student Publications: Gael L. Cooper.
MEMBER
Editor James Breedlove
Managing Editor Roxie Hearn
News Editor Pam Whigham
City Editor j im Peters
Contributing Editors Sandy Russo, Steve Gray
Sports Editor Pau, McGrath
Photo Director Douglas Winship
Staff Writers
Carolyn Blosser. Ray DanieU. Pat Edmondson, Tonv Gallucci, Paula Geyer
Lee Roy Leschper, Jerry Needham, Mark Penny
The new policy came at a time
when college officials, especially
President Earl Rudder, began to
plan for a massive expansion of the
college. When the name of the
school was officially changed to Texas
A&M University in ’63 it was like a
gun sounded that began the race to
keep up with the times and if possi
ble, pass them up.
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Charges and countercharges about the Southwest Con
ference investigation of Jarvis Williams and Karl Godine
have been tossed about by the media like so many rotten
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eggs.
For example, a story in The Battalion Tuesday, showed
the willingness of some principals in the investigation to
make statements about matters clearly in doubt. How
ever, several things need to be put in perspective.
First of all, lie detector tests are neither official nor
unofficial. They also do not indicate guilt or innocence.
They merely indicate various physiological reactions to a
series of questions.
Their value is so doubtful that generally they are not
admissable as evidence in court. The results of lie detec
tor tests also are supposed to be confidential.
Second, some of the reporting of so-called facts itself
should be suspect. The Houston News Service, for exam
ple, has been one of the principle parties initiating and
continuing the investigation. It may be too personally
involved to be objective.
Third, a great deal of mystery has surrounded the in
vestigation. Scholarship athletes in the SWC are required
to sign waivers that allow such investigations. However,
the results of such investigations should not be mishan
dled.
Damning statements about an athlete (or anybody else)
belong in court.
Fourth, today is Godine’s and William’s chance for a
rehearing. Evidence from the SWC investigation will be
presented against them. They in turn will present evi
dence in their defense.
Perhaps then a judgment of their innocence or guilt can
be made fairly and openly.
— James Breedlove
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Top of the Tower
Texas A&M University
Pleasant Dining — Great View
SERVING LUNCHEON BUFFET
11:00 A.M. - 1:30 P.M.
Each day except Saturday
Sfoi/r
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$3.00 SUNDAY
Serving soup it sandwich
11:00 A.M. - 1:30 P.M.
Monday - Friday
$1.50 plus drink
Available Evenings
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Department of Food Service
Texas A&M University
“Quality First”