There has been a lot of controversy with some of the editorial
and opinion pieces that have been in The Weekly about the
presence of male graduate students on campus.
A lot of the undergraduate students feel that the men do not
belong here and have chosen to single out the men on campus and
blame them. The truth is that they are students that deserve to be
here and be respected the way that we want to be respected.
When new students came to campus this semester and found men in
their classes and living in their dorms, they should not have
blamed the men. I don’t think that the men on campus came here
simply to spite us women, instead they came here to further their
education. If people are going to be angry with them being here,
take it up with the administration.
It seems to me that most people are angry because they did not
know that they would be in such close contact with men. What it
really comes down to is how Mills is advertised to new students.
Most people know Mills as being a women’s college, so when we are
sent brochures for undergraduate studies, most of us do not think
to ask about the graduate program and how closely they are
connected.
This is not our fault; most students do not worry about grad
school at this point in their lives. If you are angry because you
came to Mills and found men (and yes they do exist everywhere),
take it up with the administration for not letting you know ahead
of time that you might have men in your classes and eating meals in
Founders.
It is not fair to get mad at the men. Most of them are really
nice and interesting to talk with.
They did not come here to ruin our lives, and were probably just
as shocked to be put into undergraduate classes, as we were to find
them there. They come here for the programs and I’m sure they get a
lot of flack for going to a women’s college for grad school.
We should respect them for being here and if you really have a
problem with it, talk to the administration about it and make sure
that future students are told the truth about the situation. I am
personally happy that they are here.
Talk to them, they do not bite and you might even become friends
with them.
