April 12, 1973
Article about the experiences of Native American Smithies published in the Sophian
In 1973, there were only two Native American students at Smith, Linda Burr and Janet Howell. Burr talked to the Sophian about loneliness and expressed a desire for the College to recruit more Native American students. She was one of three active members in a five-college Native American organization. However, Director of Admissions David Lasher cited various problems in identifying qualified Native American applicants and convincing them to apply to Smith. Assistant Director of Admissions Anne Teal pointed to factors influencing that recruitment, commenting “Smith is far away, expensive, and does not have a large enough Indian community to attract (them) to Smith.” Still, she went on to mention that Smith would have the incentive of federal grants to enroll a higher number of minority students. The Sophian article writers claimed that “the Northampton area has no indigenous Indian groups” without providing evidence for their claim beyond an assertion that Native American cultural practices were not seen here and articulated the probability of cultural shock upon arrival. Accepted Native American students would be invited to participate in the Bridge orientation program alongside their Black and Latinx peers.
Indian students view group minority problems
[Last updated on October 29, 2018]