New Ivy Classes Reply Late; Campus Unrest Called Cause

Students admitted to Columbia's class of 1976 are answering their acceptance letters more slowly than previous classes, Michael Lacopo, director of admissions at Columbia University said Wednesday.

Lacopo said he felt this implies that students are considering their choice much more carefully because of the recent disruptions on the Columbia campus.

Radcliffe dean of admissions Catherine D. Williston said yesterday that, although she had no exact figures, "responses seem to be coming in more slowly than usual."

"The publicity given to the CFIA trashing could have caused prospective students to reconsider coming to Radcliffe." Williston added.

Harvard admissions, however, have not been adversely affected. Bradlee T. Howe, associate director of Admissions said yesterday. Responses for this year are about 50 per cent in, which is consistent with past years.

At this time last year, Columbia had received close to 1300 replies to acceptance letters. This year, seven days before the May I return deadline, only about 600 people have responded, Lacopo said.

Disruptions

The first major disruptions on the Columbia campus occured April 17, two days after the bulk of the acceptance letters had been received.

"Parents see that our spring semester has been disrupted for three years and wonder if it is worth the money to come here," Lacopo said.

Lacopo said that he felt that it was too early to tell if the quality of the new class would be affected. Williston, however, felt that the incoming Radcliffe freshmen class would be about the same as usual.