42 Students Transfer Houses As Policy Debate Continues

Severe crowding in the Houses forced a decline in the number of students permitted to transfer between the residential dorms this spring. College officials said this week.

Forty-two of 95 applicants succeeded in their transfer bids, down from 53 of 95 who changed Houses last January. Officials explained that the Houses are crowded largely because the number of students taking leaves of absence is decreasing.

Adams House admitted the most transfers 11. But Eliot and Winthrop accepted none, and no other House accepted more than seven.

Winners and losers gave mixed reviews to the transfer process, which students often claim is too subjective and administrators this year altered slightly.

College officials decided in the fall to prevent a disproportionate number of students of any one class from leaving a House, an occurrence which "crippled the morale" of several Quad Houses in previous years, according to one official.

Theresa M. Cavalier, the College's recently appointed housing officer, said that the new rule did not affect this year's applicants, but the College refused to release the names of students both granted and denied transfers.

Cavalier said that the most important factors in the transfer decisions were the effect transfers would have on each House's male-to-female ratios and on the size of its three classes. Applicants' personal qualities played only a secondary role, she said.

But officials acknowledged in interviews this week that discrepancies in individual House policies allow some masters to wield considerable discretionary power in the transfer selection process.

"We let each House make its own decision, and the reasons vary quite significantly," said Thomas A. Dingman '67, assistant dean for housing.

He added that while some Houses "flip a coin" when deciding admittances, others conduct interviews, consider personal factors such as roommate compatibility and potential "contributions" a student may make to a House.

Lowell House Master William H. Bossert '59 downplayed the influence of factors like knowing House masters or other residents well "On the few occasions when we've had terribly effusive people, we haven't accepted them," he added.

Some officials, however, said factors like "politeness" might make a difference in some cases.

"I certainly would be more impressed by someone who wasn't rude than by someone who was," said Sandra Spanier, assistant to the Kirkland roasters, "I usually ask people to have their friends in the House write letters to me."

Review

Although the current system has been is operation for many years, Diagman said. "We would all probably benefit from a review of the process."

Several officials indicated that procedures likely would be examined in the spring as part of a broad, ongoing review of the College's Housing policies.

Students who participated in the most recent transfer process differed in their views of its possible biases.

"If they know you, it can't hurt, but I don't think it's as political as people think," said one Mather House junior who transfered to Quincy.

One student who failed to gain admittance to Lowell said he "had heard extremely vague rumors about people buttering up House officials."