RGA Committee Opens Investigation Of Cliffie Attitudes Toward Housing

The RGA Housing Committee has begun its study of living conditions at Radcliffe.

In an attempt to improve the current housing situation, the committee is circulating a questionnaire which will help determine "the kind of environment which would enable students to live satisfactorily as both individuals and as Radcliffe College students."

The major aims of the questionnaire are to find out how Cliffies feel about living in dormitories, why they feel this way, and what changes they think should be made in college housing.

The questions, designed to investigate the psychological and physical aspects of dormitory life, range from "Do you like living in a dormitory?" to "How many people do you feel you are living with?"

The need for the questionnaire became apparent early in December, when Ellen M. Snyder '65 introduced a motion to allow Radcliffe seniors over 21 years old to live in non-college housing. According to Miss Snyder, RGA decided to form the Housing Committee because the debate was being carried on with insufficient facts.

The committee expects response to the questionnaire to show a wide range of opinion. Such response would strengthen the committee's conviction that "Radcliffe should allow as much flexibility in living conditions as Harvard allows in academic opportunity."

Many students feel that suites similar to those in the Houses would be one way of providing such variety, but converting present rooms to suites would involve spending more money than Radcliffe can afford. Current plans for the future Fourth House, however, include such room arrangements.

Radcliffe established its current policy on forbidding students to live in non-college housing in the 1930's, when it first became a residential college, rather than a group of women commuting to Harvard.

The committee feels that "if it should come out that people don't consider it a residential college, the trustees and deans will probably try to make it more appealing as a residential college."

Such a change is considered unlikely, since it would have to be approved by the College Council, as well as by RGA.