1970s: Ch-ch-ch-changes

Ch-ch-ch-changes...

Lisa A. Rubini ’79

In contrast to the ’60s, the ’70s seemed like a decade of normalcy. However, the decade brought its own set of changes.

Life at Lowder Street included a substantial dose of academics and hefty reading lists (including a very long novel by Charles Dickens on each summer’s list). Traditions such as school dances, Junior Ring Ceremony, the Father-Daughter Dance, the Holiday Bazaar, and Mission Day filled the calendar. Under the guidance of Mr. Jack DiLorenzo, fall plays and spring musicals played to sellout crowds. The school newspaper, SOS Club (Students Offering Service), cheerleading, athletics, and many more were mainstays. School life may have seemed unchanging, but the world around us did not stand still.

A Shift in Education

Fifty years after women gained the right to vote, with their career opportunities beginning to expand, our education adapted to meet those changes. With the second wave of the feminist movement under way, and many formerly all-male colleges going co-ed, Ursuline students had more opportunities ahead of them than ever before. Under the leadership of principals Sr. Rita Bourassa OSU, and Sr. Dorothy Doyle OSU, Ursuline’s whole-person educational offerings expanded for its students. The principals’ messages in the yearbooks speak to the purpose of an Ursuline education in such an era:

“It has been said that your generation is the first in America to have grown up without optimism; yet, my message to you is one of hope, the kind of hope which is the virtue of the strong, and the courage of the unshakable. By keeping hope alive in yourselves, may you make the vision clearer for others, and speak to mankind of peace and reconciliation. – Sr. Rita Bourassa, Principal 1968–1973; 1982–1986

MUSIC: Approximately 350,000 attend Woodstock in 1969.

1969

Basketball joins cheerleading and the “athletic association” for athletics offerings.

1970

Ursuline students attend Xaverian for Advanced Biology and Physics classes. In March, students perform “The Recluse” directed by Sister Claveria. Sister Rachel of UA Springfield directs “Genesis.” MAIS OUI!: French Club is added in 1970.

1971

Ursuline’s nursery school is operated in conjunction with UA’s Child Psychology class.

“Your Ursuline motto ‘Serviam’ epitomizes women’s contribution as one of initiative, cooperation, courtesy, loyalty and intelligent loving service of God and others. If you are humble enough and courageous enough to live up to the Serviam motto, you will contribute mightily to the achievement of women’s rights and responsibilities. I wish you that humility and that courage.”

– Sr. Dorothy Doyle, Principal 1974–1982

The Ursulines continued to teach a classical education. We received a strong foundation in Latin and learned the proper way to set a table and drink tea from Sr. Ursula. However, we would not be confined to the role of teacher, nurse, and receptionist; we were prepared to become lawyers, doctors, and scientists.

Lay Faculty and Changing Habits

During the ’70s, there was also a shift from Ursuline educators to lay faculty. By the mid-’70s, nearly half of the faculty were lay teachers, teaching with the same vibrant spirit of Ursuline sisters such as Sr. Jacqueline Lacasse, Sr. Mercedes Videira, Sr. Judith Dozois, and Sr. Celia Sirois. Alumnae Pat Varrieur ’71, Francesca Testa Sterling ’65, Susan Katchpole ’70, and Maureen Coneely ’69 joined the ranks of the lay faculty. The Second Vatican Council (1962–1965) led to major changes within religious orders in the ensuing years. The Ursulines adopted a new naming. Sisters changed their titles (i.e., Mother Reparatta became Sr. Dorothy Walsh), and veils and habits were set aside by many. Patty Foley Cummins ’77 recalls, In 1970, Ursuline students attended Xaverian for Advanced Biology and Physics classes. By the end of the ’70s, those classes, along with AP English, were taught at Ursuline. In 1971, Ursuline’s nursery school and kindergarten, run by Sr. Angela ’59, operated in conjunction with the Child Psychology program. The origins of the senior service project can be traced back to the 1970s to Senior Independent Study, a month-long off-campus internship that provided an opportunity for seniors to explore careers or personal interests through volunteer service. Internships included areas of law, medicine, early childhood, the arts, and more. Some of us continued our service after the internships were over.

National and Global Events

Changes continued to evolve from the Civil Rights Movement, Women’s Movement, and the anti-war sentiment. The Vietnam War, which began in 1955 and ended with the fall of Saigon on April 30, 1975, was a constant fixture on television. Ursuline students wore POW and MIA bracelets to draw attention to service members who were missing or captured during combat. In addition, the plight of California farmworkers in the early ’70s was on the minds and in the hearts of Ursuline students.

“We devoted what I recall as a full day or nearly so to the plight of California farmworkers – young people from the area came to talk to us about the work situation and the living conditions of their families. We ... had a concluding prayer service.”

– Barbara Roche Rico ’73“All nuns wore veils and habits in the early years, but in 1973, Sr. Judith took off her veil. By 1974–1975 many Sisters did not wear veils. They dressed much more informally.”

TRAVEL: Trips to countries like Italy and Spain helped to expand knowledge of foreign cultures. OFF-CAMPUS: In the ’70s, seniors engaged in a four-week independent study in a field of their choice. This evolved into Student Service week.

1973

April: As part of a nationwide outreach, The Atomic Energy Commission provides a lecture and demonstration on nuclear power to the entire Ursuline student body. October 1973 (through March 1974): First gas crisis in U.S. occurs following an oil embargo by OPEC.

SPORTS: Teams added in the ’70s included Ski (Club), Swim, and Bowling in 1973, Tennis in 1974, Volleyball in 1976, and Softball in 1979.

TITLE IX & SPORTS

The passage of Title IX in 1972 created more opportunities in sports for young women across the U.S., and offerings at Ursuline expanded as well. In 1973, the ski club was added. Also offered that year were the swim team, coached by Frannie Sullivan, and bowling. Tennis began in 1974, and was further solidified as an Ursuline sport when the tennis courts were installed and, with the entire school body present on the back lawn, blessed in 1978. Volleyball (1976) and softball (1979) joined the lineup of offered sports, including an intramural softball program. Just two years after its inception, the Ursuline volleyball team won the league championship in 1978.

“The tennis court was installed in 1978 – and the entire school turned out on the back field to watch the blessing and dedication.”

– Patty Foley Cummins ’77

1974

May: Ursuline students attend “Law Day” at the Norfolk Probate Court in Dedham. President Richard Nixon resigns on August 20, 1974. The environment also became a topic of concern. The first Earth Day, in which 20 million people took part in protests across the U.S., was held on April 20, 1970. The decade was also marked by gas shortages. From October, 1973 through March, 1974, we experienced our first gas shortage of the decade. Gas rationing was mandated, with long lines at the pump, and the maximum speed limit across the U.S. reduced to 55 mph. This led to an interest in renewable energy, nuclear power, and domestic fossil fuels. The second gas crisis occurred in 1979. The impact was mixed, but once again we experienced long lines at gas stations, and the marketing of downsized vehicles and a push for improved auto fuel economy. June of 1972 brought us the Watergate break-in and President Nixon’s resignation on August 20, 1974. The United States Bicentennial was celebrated with great fervor in 1976. The UA Yearbook, OLIM, sported a blue cover and the Liberty Bell. Kathryn Shaughnessy Lawson ’77 recalls,

“In 11th grade, everyone was Bicentennial crazy (even the yearbook…had the Liberty Bell on it).”

Rounding out the end of the decade, who can forget the Blizzard of 1978? Cars were stranded on Route 128, people walked for miles to get to safety, and tragically, nearly 100 people perished. We walked to local grocery stores through mounds of snow and carried our groceries back on sleds, and school was closed for weeks. At Ursuline, the SOS Club held a canned food drive for victims of the blizzard.

“1978 was my graduation year and the storm meant a lot of missed school for the snow… The next week was our February vacation and then our senior class started our [internships/service] ... We were away from the building for a total of six weeks.”

– Francie Kelley ’78

1975

The Vietnam War, which began in 1955, ends with the fall of Saigon in April.

1976

The country goes bicentennial crazy. Ursuline’s Olim yearbook reflects that with a blue cover and a silver Liberty Bell. The musical “Hello Dolly” is performed May 6-8.

3 4 5 6

1. Awards Night 2. 1973 Junior Ring Ceremony 3. Father-Daughter Dance 4. Students perform Annie, the musical. 5. Class of 1979 commencement exercises 6. Campus frivolity

1978

The Blizzard of ’78 results in three weeks out of school. SOS runs a can drive for victims of the blizzard. In its third year, Varsity Volleyball clinches the Catholic Suburban League championship. Tennis courts are donated and installed. The entire student body turns out to watch the blessing and dedication on the back field on October 13, 1978.