1987-88

This Timeline is based on a portion of Tim Shary's A History of Student Activities and Achievements at Hampshire College. Anything not otherwise cited comes from this source.

October
Oct 3


 * A sign directing negative comments at the black, handicapped, lesbian, hispanic and third world communities at Hampshire is found outside the Merrill Master's House; second-year student Dianna Frid, who found the sign, organizes a vigil that night. [Name This Paper: October 9, 1987]

Oct 9


 * "The Permanent Press", as yet unnamed and running as "Name This Paper", debuts under the collective editorship of students Chris Dick, Michael Dorfman, Mary Ellen Doyle, Stacy Hochheiser, John Keh, and Leah Melnick.[Name This Paper: October 9, 1987]


 * The Mixed Nuts Food Co-op has been moved from its home in Greenwich donut III to "temporary" housing in the Prescott tavern, due to cockroach infestation in Greenwich. [Name This Paper: October 9, 1987]

Oct 23


 * After holding an unpublicized first meeting of the semester on October 13, Community Council has come under scrutiny by students and even some of its own members, beginning the most disorganized and least productive semester in Council history. [Name This Paper: October 23, 1987; Council records]

Oct 29


 * The Student Workers Coalition holds their first meeting to begin an arduous and enduring effort to raise student workers' wages; its organizers are Mary McDonald and Barbara Reiser. [Nearly Named: November 6, 1987]

November
Nov 6


 * Three students have identified themselves as being involved in the sign vandalism incident on October 3; Kyung "Rich" Lee, Tim Wilson, and Jenna Senechal maintain that an off-campus friend actually wrote the graffiti, which was meant to be satirical. [Nearly Named: November 6, 1987]

Nov 7


 * Student Joe Macau's car bursts into flames while parked in front of the Robert Crown Center; the cause of the fire remains undetermined. [Legal Grafitti: November 20, 1987]

Nov 20


 * Dakin resident Michelle Lavallee has gone on leave in response to continuing verbal and physical racial harassment from an unknown assailant which began on October 18; despite hall watches and police investigation, a suspect is never found.[Legal Graffiti: November 20, 1987]

December
Dec 7


 * A petition signed by 250 students is presented to Adele Simmons, asking that the library be kept open until 2 a.m.; AdCom responds by setting up an ad hoc committee to investigate the possibility. [The Permanent Press: December 11, 1987]

Dec 11


 * The Permanent Press prints under its newly accepted name, coined by students Sage Guyton and David Sullivan; after numerous complaints, "Legal Graffiti", Andy Arnold's previous idea for the title, was dropped. [The Permanent Press: December 11, 1987]


 * Community Council Treasurer Eric Young has resigned after the Finance Committee fails to accept a proposal for new funding procedures submitted by Council member Erik B.[The Permanent Press: December 11, 1987]


 * The Mixed Nuts Food Co-op has opened in a permanent structure behind the Prescott Tavern. [The Permanent Press: December 11, 1987]

January
Jan 26


 * Community Council holds an informal meeting to discuss accusations made by students alleging that a group called "The Fraternity" is sponsoring a "get laid" party with a wet t-shirt contest; Council later decides to no longer fund the group. [The Permanent Press: February 12, 1988]

Jan 28


 * Students Mary Ellen Doyle, Nina Mallette, and Heidi Dorow, representing the Peoples Organization for Worker Equality and Revolution, confront the Trustees' Finance Committee, meeting in Manhattan, to demand they address a student wage increase. [The Permanent Press: February 12,1988]

February
Feb 9


 * Community Council holds their largest election ever, with over 480 votes granted to at-large student members Dake Ackley, Bill Karieva, Sue Sauvain, Sarah Heegaard, Mary McDonald, and Andy Arnold; Council heads into a strong era of student action. [The Permanent Press: February 26, 1988]

Feb 12


 * The multi-sports facility is $138,000 over budget, nearly 20% more than its original cost estimate; it is scheduled for completion in August, 1988. [The Permanent Press: February 12, 1988]


 * Four students, Erik Lindenauer, John McCaughey, Nikolas Triantafillou, and Tim Sullivan, have organized the first Hampshire cycling team. [The Permanent Press: February 12, 19881

Feb 16


 * Community Council votes to remove member Erik B. due to his allegedly racist and sexist slandering of outgoing Council Chairperson, Michele Johnson; the act was allowed after an approved suspension of the bylaws. [The Permanent Press: February 26, 1988]

Feb. 18


 * After complaints following a recent "Sex and Violence Film Festival" in Dakin D1, house supervisor Jim Jemison cancels a scheduled showing of two science fiction films by students Matt Friedman and Dan Bukszpan, claiming the films are offensive. [The Permanent Press: February 26, 1988]

Feb 23


 * A scheduled All-community meeting is interrupted and ultimately suspended as members of SOURCe announce that Third World students have occupied the Dakin Masters' House (see SOURCe Occupation of the Dakin Master's House, 1988), with demands forthcoming; a vigil is held in the Dakin quad that evening. [The Permanent Press: February 26,1988]

Feb 24


 * Negotiations begin between SOURCe and the administration on demands for changes that have been proposed. [The Permanent Press: February 26,1988]

Feb 26


 * Students Hasok Chang, Joe Russack, Lisa Hirschfield, Kirsten Heckler, Josh Freedman, and Stephanie Peirce, form the Lunchtime Coalition and issue a statement to the community citing reasons why they feel that the Dakin occupation "was not called for". [Memo to the community: February 26,1988]

Feb 29


 * Second-year student David Costello hangs himself near Physical Plant; a memorial service is held on March 13. [Memos to the community: 2/29/88 and 3/10/88]

March
Mar 1


 * After reaching preliminary agreement on revised demands, SOURCe ends their occupation of the Dakin Masters' House, ending the longest takeover in Hampshire history. [The Permanent Press: March 11, 1988]


 * Community Council approves a motion by member Tim Shary to overturn the removal of Erik B. to allow the Executive Committee to handle it according to Council bylaws. [The Permanent Press: Much 11, 1988]


 * The Lost Sheep Committee is formed by students Andy Elsberg, Sarah Townes, Peter O'Donnell, and David Smathers, who organize a community meeting to foster communication on the SOURCe takeover. [The Permanent Press: March 11, 1988]

Mar 2


 * The Executive Committee of Community Council again removes Erik B. from his membership due to his offensive slandering of the previous Council Chairperson, by a vote of 6 to 1. [The Permanent Press: March 11, 1988]

Mar 3


 * 300 people march in a rally against racism that stretches across the campus, lead by keynote speaker Mel King. [The Permanent Press: March 11, 1988]


 * The Student Workers Coalition organizes a job walkout by work-study students, threatening a strike if the administration does not renegotiate a pay raise; an administrative task force had recommended a 25-cent raise, which workers felt was not enough. [The Permanent Press: March 11, 1988]

Mar. 8


 * "Hair", directed by student Ted Simpson, closes after one of the most successful and critically-acclaimed theatrical runs in Hampshire history, earning the cast and crew a performance with the original Broadway cast in Washington, D.C. later that month. [The Permanent Press: April 15, 1988]

Mar 10


 * A teach-in on racism and classism entitled "Race and Class: Working for Change", organized by professors Fran White, Susan Tracy, Deb Martin, and Mike Ford, is held and attended by students, staff, faculty, and many guests. [Memo to the community: March 10,1988]

Mar 12


 * Jonathan Kitzen, a second-year film student, shocks Security and a group of Elderhostel with an experiment in which he hides a camera in the RCC and videotapes crowd reactions to a "dead" student lying face-down in a pool of fake blood near the library. [Personal account]

Mar 14


 * Students Bill Karieva and Avi Schleifer organize an all-community meeting for the second time in a month to discuss events and problems on campus; over 500 people attend. [The Permanent Press: April 8, 1988]

Mar 31


 * After many tense and controversial meetings with administrators, the Student Workers Coalition announces that they are willing to accept a compromised wage of $4.18/hour until the end of the semester, still demanding $4.75/hour by the fall semester. [The Permanent Press: April 8, 1988]

April
Apr 4


 * A riot of over 100 students breaks out in the Prescott quad shortly after midnight as students protest an unexpected change in the housing policy which would force students to leave mods that did not have a certain number of returning residents. [The Permanent Press: April 8, 1988]

Apr 8


 * In a highly contested special meeting, Community Council votes to overturn the housing policy changes proposed by the administration and elects to form a committee to evaluate the situation at its next meeting. [Community Council Misc.: 88S-Z69]

Apr 12


 * At the largest Community Council meeting in years, Director of Housing Jack Kuszaj apologizes for the lack of student involvement with the previously proposed housing policy, and begins work with the Council's ad hoc housing committee. [The Permanent Press: April 15, 1988]

Apr 13


 * A pre-registration policy for new students enrolling in classes sparks controversy as two-thirds of all 100-level courses and one-third of all 200-level courses are reserved for new students; the decision was apparently made without student input. [The Permanent Press: April 22, 1988]

Apr 20


 * By a vote of 7 to 6, Community Council rejects the newly proposed housing policy, citing that the proposed policy is too similar to its original; house staff react with anger and frustration. [The Permanent Press: April 22, 1988]

Apr 22


 * Merrill House Master David Kerr and student intern Jana Naylor accuse the administration of censorship after it is announced that Duplications will no longer copy their "Fred" or other house newsletters, or "The Commentary", a right-wing student magazine. [The Permanent Press: April 22, 1988]

Apr 23


 * The Grateful Dead Historical Society sponsors a party to set the record for most people in the RCC sauna; founder of the society, John Dwork, joins members of the Permanent Press and Community Council as the head count hits 30 at 6:16 p.m. [The Permanent Press: May 6, 1988]

Apr 29


 * Concerned members of the staff issue a statement condemning a rash of recent graffiti incidents and vandalism that have defaced the multi-sports facilty (still under construction) and various classrooms on campus. [The Permanent Press: April 22, 1988]

May
May 4


 * Trustee Secretary Peter Gluckler declares the recent student trustee election process invalid after first-year student candidates Anita Fearman and Katherine Pelletreau run in the primary despite a bylaw limiting the position to older students. [The Permanent Press: May 6, 1988]

May 6


 * Keely Respass, a black second-year student, has filed discriminatory charges against the Admissions Office after she was fired at the start of the semester because of her planned transfer in the fall and her view on race relations at Hampshire. [The Permanent Press: May 6, 1988]