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SACSA: 60TH ANNUAL AWARDS AND CELEBRATION BANQUET
COMMENTS AND PROGRAM
Good Evening and welcome to the SACSA annual awards and recognition banquet. As customary, we will be awarding our five traditional awards tonight, but we will also be celebrating our past. Ten years ago it was 1999 and we were celebrating our 50th anniversary. It was my first SACSA Conference and I still recall the theme in Louisville, KY: “Who we are then, is what we are now!” How true this theme still rings 10 years later, as in 1949 we were about professional guidance and in 2009 we are about professional development.
Tonight, we will also be saluting our future as stated in this year’s theme “Composing the lyrics of our future!”
Before we continue, I would like to introduce you to the head table and the position they occupy on your Executive Council. I will start at my left, your right. And EC members, please stand and remain standing until all have been introduced.
1. Colette Taylor, Past President (unable to attend)
2. Amy Coles, 2009 Local Arrangements Chair
3. Andrew Johnston, 2010-2012 Mid-Managers Institute Director
4. Ken Posner, VP for Media
5. myself
6. Denisha Sanders, Award and Recognition Chair/incoming VPPD
7. Sherryl Byrd, President-elect (President in about 3 hours)
8. Melissa Shivers, VPPD and President-elect
9. Roger Becks, 2009 Conference Program Chair
10. Jane Adams-Dunford, VP for Partnerships
11. Roland Bullard, VP for Constituent Relations
12. Joe Buck, SACSA Executive Director
Once again, please join me in applauding this year’s executive council on the truly outstanding work they have performed for your association.
One of the by-products of serving as President of SACSA is the great friends you make at other campuses as you work on various initiatives. I have been incredibly blessed this year to be able to deepen a friendship with Andrew Johnston, Dean of Students at Belmont University. Andrew will be serving as our Director for the Mid-Managers Institute for 2010-2012 cycle. I have asked Andrew if he would deliver our invocation for tonight’s meal…. Andrew.
If you have not started, please begin with your salad while our meal is being served.
(DINNER…..)
As tradition holds, it is my pleasure to recognize our EC members who are rotating off the Board this year. So, will Jane Adams-Dunford please join me on the stage. (Comments about Jane.)
Also, rotating off the board, well sort of, is Melissa Shivers. Melissa is due to rotate off, but as you know she will be continuing her service with us as President-Elect, President and Past President for the next three years. (Comments about Melissa.)
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HISTORY:
The year was 1949 and a man named Stanley Jones from Auburn University had an idea to form a southern sub-group of the American College Personnel Association as part of the National ACPA organization. He pursued this idea by investing $1.50 in 50 post cards which he sent to student affairs workers in the 9 states of: Alabama, Georgia, Louisiana, Tennessee, Florida, Kentucky, Mississippi, North Carolina and South Carolina. Hilary Gotbath, SACSA President in 1965, had this to say about our Beginnings…. ”One man’s idea nourished by an expenditure of $1.50 has paid a hundredfold, time and time again in a short span of time.”
It is important to note that Stanley Jones was a graduate student in 1949
at Auburn University when he began organizing his efforts. Hence, the reason why today, SACSA stresses the importance of our graduate student members and their influence in our Organization.
On November 7, 1950, the first meeting of the new Association, titled the Southern College Personnel Association, held its first meeting in Nashville, TN and today, 60 years later, here we are.
Through the past 6 decades, SACSA has had many successful accomplishments and initiatives, but the Association’s early commitment to diversity in one that stands out for us as an Associational identity. And on the national scene. This commitment was displayed through a very deliberate inclusion and involvement of both Black and Female professionals at a time when neither African-Americans nor women in the south were welcomed into professional organizations. Significant to mention is the fact that at the first conference, in 1950 in Nashville, TN, there were active and full representatives from the following Historically Black Colleges and Universities: Tuskegee Institute, Savannah State College, Western Kentucky State University, Tennessee A & I, and Fisk University.
For any organization to make race and gender of primary concern in the 1950’s was a courageous undertaking. For a Southern organization to take the stance was doubly courageous. It is clear that the founders of SACSA were remarkable individuals who chose to honor and respect each other in very determined and deliberate ways. This commitment should be recognized as an important contribution to the student affairs
profession nationally, and it should be remembered and valued as a central achievement in the history of the Association.
In 1950 at the first meeting, four programs and one major speaker comprised the 2-day conference, which was attended by 70 participants. As of today, a total of 1,229 different interest sessions have been presented at 59 SACSA conferences held from 1950-2009 (excluding 1952 as for some reason there is no program book available that year to research). For historical sake, the breakdown is:
105 interest session in the 1950’s
138 in the 1960’s
181 in the 1970’s
467 in the 1980’s
613 in the 1990’s
And with still one more year in the 2000’s, we have had 671 program sessions delivered to date.
That is a lot of professional development!!!!!
In addition, SACSA program topics have changed through the times. A highlight of topics covered in certain years include….
1954... Is Student Personnel a profession?
1966… LSD on the College Campus
1967… The relationship of commuter students with the campus
1971… Accountability in Higher Education
1977… The forthcoming rights of Gay, Lesbian, Bi/Transgender
1979… Alcohol abuse on campus.
1982… Parental Involvement
1985… College students and financial management
1987… Student Athletes
1990… Fund Raising in Student Affairs
The usual format of our traditional awards banquet is rather routine, but in keeping with the fact that this year has been anything but routine, and with 2009 being our 60th anniversary, we have decided to mix it up a little bit and have some fun with our past and toast our future. So, tonight we will travel back to the 1950’s, 60’s, 70’s, 80’s and 90’s through world events, collegiate events, music, and fashion as we re-visit some pop culture and learn where we came from.
As we begin this Journey, I want to share with you some quick, factual, but very humorous scenarios that delineate the differences in our society between 2009 and 1949 when SACSA was founded.
Read scenarios. Mention Past Presidents and read Pat Hardwood’s letter.
1950’s
The end of WWII brought thousands of servicemen back to America to pick up their lives and start new families, in new homes, in new jobs. With an energy never before experienced, American industry expanded to meet peacetime needs. Americans began buying goods not available during the war, which was the start of a global economy. The resulting theme: Growth everywhere.
This growth was evident in such events as: production of the Hydrogen bomb, transcontinental television broadcasts, the Immigration and Naturalization Act removing ethnic barriers to become a US Citizen, development of a vaccine for polio, the Federal Highway Act beginning the interstate system, the first domestic jet-airline passenger service b/t NYC and Miami, and Alaska and Hawaii joining the Unites States of America.
Expansion could also be witnessed on the international scene as:
- 12 nations signed the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) pledging to never have another World War.
- The establishment of the German Federal Republic.
- The Communist People Republic of China proclaiming itself as an independent nation.
- Britain recognizing the independence of the Republic of Ireland.
- The Soviets launching Sputnik, the first satellite to orbit the Earth and the start of the “Space Race.”
- The recognition of Israel as a sovereign state followed by dramatically increased tensions in the mid-East that we still observe today.
The most profound educational change was the ruling of Brown vs. Board of Education that halted the doctrine and practice of “separate but equal.” Before the mid-fifties, it had been determined that the correct method to insure that all students in America receive an equal education was to provide facilities and instruction that segregate blacks and whites. This landmark case determined that “separate but equal” was not constitutional. The result was nationwide integration. Successful examples of desegregation are: The enrollment of Arthurine Lucy at the University of Alabama, Elizabeth Eckford’s successful admission into Central High School in Little Rock, AR, and the refusal to give up her bus seat to a white citizen in Selma, Alabama. (Notice that all these states mentioned are in the SACSA region).
In the early 50’s a draft was implemented which resulted in a 50% drop in enrollment in colleges as males enlisted in the Armed Services for the Korean War. After the War, there was a boom in family income, economic productivity and a boom in College attendance. As such, collegiate athletics suddenly burst on the scene with night and weekend games.
Due to so many students attending athletic events at these unfamiliar times, blue jeans, poodle skirts, pony tails and flat tops became the thing and style to wear. Pastimes included watching Dick Clark’s American Bandstand, hula hooping and playing with Silly Putty.
Music represented a dichotomy as crooners such as Frank Sinatra, Nat King Cole, Perry Como remained fashionable, but also accepted was the new rock ‘n roll, made common by Bill Haley, Elvis Presley and Jerry Lee Lewis.
1960’s
The sixties were the age of youth, as 70 million children from the post-war baby boom became teenagers. The movement away from the conservative fifties continued and eventually resulted in revolutionary ways of thinking and real change in the cultural fabric of American Life. Young people wanted change. Their eventual changes affected education, values, lifestyles and laws.
As these 70 million teenager made their way to college, the college campus became epi-centers of debate and protest. Several events served as catalyst of the 60’s upheaval, including the Vietnam War, and the assassinations of John F. Kennedy, Malcolm X, Martin Luther King, Jr. and Robert Kennedy. Changes that were produced were:
- Presidential Commission on the Status of women establishes NOW - National Organization for Women
- Civil Rights Act of 1964
- The birth Control Bill becoming widely available
- Colorado becoming the 1st state to legalize abortion
- Prayer in public schools was ruled unconstitutional
- Religions such as Transcendental Meditation and Zen Buddhism became rampant.
However, with the changes the American economy did not change and the cost of living remained low. Listen to these prices:
New House: $ 12,675
Average Income: $5,199 year
NewCar: $2,160
Movie Ticket: $ 1.00
Harvard Tuition: $1,250
Gasoline: $ .25
Postage Stamp: $. 04
An estimated 850,000 freshmen entered college resulting in emergency living quarters, which resulted in student protest leading to the founding of the off-campus “commune.”
Due to the 70 million young adults, they persuasively swayed fashion and fads of the decade. Skateboards, Barbie Dolls, G.I. Joe and the Troll doll were overnight successes in the 60’s.
The 60s began with crew cuts on men and bouffant hairstyles on women. By-mid-decade, miniskirts and hot pants were often worn with go-go boots and women’s hair was worn either very short or very long and lanky. Men’s neckties actually reached a width of 6” and were heavily patterned. Unisex dressing was popular featuring bell bottomed jeans, love beads, and embellished t-shirts. African-Americans of both genders wore their hair in an afro.
The musical phenomenon of the ‘60s was Woodstock, a three day musical festival that drew 400,000 hippies and featured peace, love, happiness and LSD. The music icon of the 60s was the Beatles. However, in implementing their desire for change, both women and blacks found ways to express themselves in the emergence of such groups as Gladys Knight and the Pips, Aretha Franklin, The Supremes, Smoky Robinson, James Brown and Ray Charles.
1970’s
The chaotic events of the 60’s including war and social change, seemed destined to continue in the 1970’s. Major trends include a growing disillusionment of government, advancement in civil rights, and space exploration. Many of the radical ideas of the 60’s gained mainstream acceptance in the 70’s.
The country was rocked with profound changes such as the resignation of a vice-president and then a president due to impeachment threats. Watergate filled the newspapers, Roe vs. Wade legalized abortion, crime rates soared, 19 were killed in the first international terrorist siege at the 1972 Munich, Germany, Olympic Games, and after years of protest, South Vietnam falls to Communist forces of North Vietnam.
Three separate but powerful events heavily impacted the nation’s college campuses in the 70’s. The Kent State Massacre, with four students gunned down by the Ohio National Guardsmen attempting to stem the anti-war demonstration, was the most devastating. Second, mandatory bussing to achieve racial school integration often lead to violent protests at colleges and universities. Finally, and on a positive note, Congress guaranteed equal educational access to the disabled with the Education
Act of 1975.
The economy rocked out of control as well. It hits its worst recession in 40 years. Below are a few prices:
New House: $ 23,400 (up 50% from the previous decade)
Average Income: $9,357 year
New Car: $ 3,979
Movie Ticket: $1.50
Tuition to Harvard: $ 2,400 (doubled in price from the 60’s)
Gasoline: $ .36
Postage : $ .06
Mood rings, lava lamps, Rubik’s cubes, and smiley faces all captured the imaginations of college students in the 70’s. The wildest fad of college students was streaking nude through public places. The fashion influence existed of hip huggers, clogs, gypsy dresses, and leisure suits. Women even began to dress like men as they sported derby hats, tweed jackets, and neckties with baggy pants.
By the 1970’s, the term rock and roll had become nearly meaningless. This decade saw the breakup of the Beatles, and the death of Elvis. As such, music began to splinter into a multitude of styles: soft rock, hard rock, country rock, folk rock, punk rock, and shock rock – and the dance craze of the decade – DISCO! Among the top names in popular music were: The Bee Gees, Donna Summer, David Bowie, ELO, The Who, Rod Stewart, and Three Dog Night.
1980’s
Me! Me! Me! These were the words of the 1980’s. During the 80’s hostile takeovers, leveraged buyouts, and mega-mergers spawned a new breed of millionaire. Donald Trump and Leona Helmsley connoted the rise and fall of the “Rich and Famous.” Buzz words such as: “If you’ve got it, flaunt it,” and “Shop ‘til you Drop” become watchwords for the decade. For the first time Forbes list of the 400 richest people become more important than its 500 largest companies. Binge buying and credit became a way of life as “labels” were everything, especially to high schoolers and collegiates. It was the splurge generation with video games, aerobics, minivans, camcorders and talk shows invading and imprinting our lives.
As people had more money, the price of living escalated. Get a load of these economic stats:
New House: $ 68,714 (keep in mind the cost of a new house in the 70’s was $23,000)
Average Income: $ 19,173 (doubled)
New Car: $ 7,201
Movie Ticket: $2.25
Harvard Tuition: $ 5,300
Gasoline: $1.19
Postage Stamp: $ .15
The early 80s presented a study by UCLA indicating the college freshmen were more interested in status, power, and money that at any other time in history. As such, business and management became the most popular college majors.
American Education came under fire in the 80’s as people cried out against budget cuts and the rising cost of tuition. As such, the word accountability was birthed and became evident as successful passing of exit exams became a requirement to graduate, and teachers were mandated to take national certification exams.
Generic application, the first name of the term political correctness, burst on the scene as the word mankind became humankind and the word Countryman became country dweller.
The combination of Nancy Reagan’s elegance and Princess Di’s love of fashion stimulate a return to opulent clothing styles. Power dressing was in with Anne Klein, Perry Ellis, Donna Karan, and Calvin Klein, while youth wore tank tops, tight-fitting pants, leg warmers and any fad made popular by two iconic entertainers: Michael Jackson and Madonna.
The 80’s brought cable TV and MTV, the digital compact disc (CD), all of which revolutionized the music industry which in turn founded Break dancing, slam dancing, and Vogueing, which included the struts and stances of high fashion models.
New Wave, punk, and hip hop became popular in the 1980’s with early important groups being Milli Vanilli, M.C. Hammer, Vanilla Ice, and L.L. Cool J.
On the national stage:
- Science and technology made terrific strides as an enormous number of Americans, including college students, began to use personal computers.
- New treatments for heart and cancer began to successfully emerge.
- Sandra Day O’Conner became the first woman Supreme Court Justice.
- Personal income climbed more than 30%.
- Geraldine Ferraro was the first woman presidential candidate.
- Jesse Jackson was the first black candidate.
- The Stock market tripled in just 6 years.
1990’s
The 1990’s were the electronic age. In fact, I would not be able to share with you these decade facts tonight if it were not for the Internet. The World Wide Web was born in 1992 and has changed the way we communicate through e-mail, the way we spend our money through on-line shopping, and the way we do business through electronic commerce. By 1993, three million people were online. By 1998, this figure had increased to 100 million people. Catch phrases such as “see you online,” and “the server’s down” became part of everyday vocabulary.
In the 1990’s the US began to take on the role of world policeman. The decade began with Saddam Hussein’s invasion of Kuwait and the resultant Gulf War. In 1993, the US police role moved to the African country of Somalia, in ‘94 to Haiti, in ’96 to Bosnia, and in 1998 Yugoslavia. Each role ended with the US playing arbitrator, enforcer, and peace keeper as we attempted to oust a warlord, military dictatorship or ethnic cleansing.
The 90’s have also been called the Merger Decade as groups tried to compromise on issues such as health care, social security reform, and gun control. Sexual scandal and violent acts rocked the decade with the Tailhook military affair, the Bill Clinton debacle, the Rodney King outcry, the O.J. Simpson trial, the Oklahoma City Bombing, and fourteen incidents of school shootings.
However, despite these negative events there was good news in the 1990’s: The economy boomed which led to a record low unemployment rate, and the minimum wage increased from $3.10 an hour to $5.15 per hour. The stock market reached an all time historical high and Americans enjoyed the country’s affluence by traveling 40 percent more than the decade before. Some economic stats are:
New House: $123,000
Average Income: $40, 000
New Car: $16,012
Movie Ticket: $ 4.00
Gasoline: $ 1.34
Harvard Tuition: $13, 545.
Postage Stamp: $ .25
On the education front, there were now 83.5 percent of Americans completing high school education verses 41 percent in 1960. The “No Child Left Behind” Act was developed and designed to provide assistance to disadvantaged students with limited proficiency in English, ERIC (the educational resources database) went on-line, Ritallin became the drug of choice for schools as more and more students were labeled ADD or ADHD. The biggest change was that college students could complete their education without coming to campus through distance education programs.
For youth, the fashion was two-sided: Either grunge or preppie. Men’s jeans grew bigger and bigger and were worn low on the hips, with girls wearing bell bottoms and poor boy tops. Dress down Fridays became commonplace and gradually developed into a more casual work dress code altogether. Fads included: Tae-bo, in-line skates, beanie babies, Furby, Tickle me Elmo, tattoos, and body piercings.
There were more music choices available than ever. Country became more mainstream and Gangsta appeared. Mariah Carey, Boyz II Men, Alanis Morrisette, Janet Jackson, Garth Brooks, and Celine Dion led the charts.
2000’s: No Narrative
1. Y2K did not cause the worlds computers to fail.
2. Favorite TV Show: Who wants to be a Millionaire and ER
3. New House: $ 134,120
4. Average Income: $41,343
5. New Car: $24,800
6. Movie Ticket: $ 5.39
7. Gasoline: $1.26
8. Harvard Tuition: $ 32,164
9. Postage Stamp: $ .33
10. Food: Milk, $ 3.24; Bread, $1.72
11. Music: “Who Let The Dogs Out” by Baha Men, “Arms Wide
Open” by Creed, and “Oops! I did it again” by Brittney Spears
12. Movies: Gladiator (academy award winner) and Castaway
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