Wellesley 1999-2000 Catalog Issue Volume 89, Number 1, September 1999 Wellesley College Bulletin Vol. 89 No. 1 September 1999 WellesleyCollegeBulletin (USPS078- 360) is published September, Decem- ber, January, February, May, August by Wellesley College, Green Hall, Wellesley, MA 02481. "PERIODI- CAL" postage paid at Boston, MA. Postmaster: Send address change to Wellesley College Bulletin, Green Hall, Wellesley College, 106 Central MA Street, Wellesley, 02481. Wellesley 1999-2000 Catalog Issue Volume 89, Number 1, September 1999 Contents Academic Calendar 1999-00 Academic Calendar 1999-00 Fall Semester Inquiries, Visits &c Correspondence Wellesleywelcomesinquiriesandvisitsto President the College from prospective students, General interests ofthe College their parents, and other interested indi- Dean ofthe College viduals. For those who would like more Academic policies and programs detailed informationon manyofthepro- Dean ofStudents gramsandopportunitiesdescribed inthis catalog,theCollegepublishesanumberof dSetnucdee,ntMlIifTe acdrvoisssi-nrge,gicsotruantsieolni,nge,xcrehsain-ge brochures and booklets. These publica- programs, international students, study tions, as well as answers to any specific abroad questions, may be obtained by writing to the appropriate office as listed. Class Deans For those who would like to visit the Individual students College, the administrative offices in Dean ofContinuing Education Green Hall are open Monday through Davis Scholars, postbaccalaureate Friday, 8:30 A.M. to 4:30 p.m. The Board students ofAdmission is open by appointment on Dean ofAdmission most Saturday mornings during the aca- Admission ofstudents and Davis demic term. With the exception ofa few Scholars holidays, arrangements can usually be madetogreetprospectivestudentsduring Director ofStudent Financial Services Wellesley's vacation periods. Accommo- Financial aid, student accounts, loan repayment, student employment, dations for alumnae and for parents of educational financing studentsorprospectivestudentsareavail- able on the campus in the Wellesley Registrar College Club and may be reserved by Transcripts ofrecords writing to the club manager. Director, Center for Work and Service A prospective student who wishes to Graduate school, employment, under- arrange an interview with a member of graduate and alumnae careercounsel- the Board ofAdmission should make an ing, community service appointment at least three weeks in Vice President for Finance and advance. Student guides are available to Administration providetoursforvisitorswithoutappoint- Business matters ments.Visitors,however,maywishtocall & the Board of Admission prior to coming Vice President for Resources toWellesleytoobtain informationregard- Public Affairs ing scheduled tours. Gifts and bequests, external relations To learn more about Wellesley before Executive Director, Alumnae youarriveoncampus,pleasevisitourweb Association site. Alumnae interests Address Wellesley College 106 Central Street Wellesley, Massachusetts 02481 (781)283-1000 http://www.wellesley.edu/ 4 Inquiries, Visits 6c Correspondence The College The mission ofWellesley College is to provide an excellent liberal artseducationforwomenwhowillmakeadifferenceintheworld. Wellesley is a college for the studentwho has high personal, intel- lectual,andcareerexpectations.Beyondthiscommonground,there is no typical Wellesley student. Since the College is a multicultural community, students come from all overthe world, from different culturesand backgrounds, andtheyhaveprepared forWellesleyat hundredsofdifferentsecondaryschools.ThroughtheDavisDegree Program, women beyond the traditional college age, many with families, are part ofthe student body working toward a Wellesley degree. Menandwomenfromothercollegesanduniversitiesstudy atWellesley through various exchange programs. Thisdiversityismadepossible,inlargepart,bytheCollege'sneed- blindadmissionpolicy.Studentsareacceptedwithoutconsideration of their ability to pay. Once admitted, those with demonstrated need receive financial aid through a variety ofservices. Henry Fowle Durant, Wellesley's founder, was an impassioned believer in educational opportunity for women. His strong phi- losophy carries over to the present day. Throughout its 124-year history Wellesley has been one ofthe country's preeminent liberal artscolleges,andadistinguishedleaderintheeducationofwomen. In some respects, the liberal arts curriculum at Wellesley has changed little sincethe Collegewas founded. Thegroupingofdis- ciplinesintothehumanities,thesocialsciences,andthenaturalsci- ences, and the requirement that each student sample widely from coursesineachgrouphasremainedaconstant.Theconceptofthe — major the opportunity foreach studentto establish mastery in a singleareathroughconcentratedstudyduringherjuniorandsenior — years has remainedconsistentaswell. The College is committed to this framework because itemphasizes the essence ofeducation: the ability to speak and write clearly, the knowledge to manage quantitativedatawithease,theconfidencetoapproachnewmate- rial,thecapacitytomakecriticaljudgments.Theseskillsareessen- tial whatever the student chooses to do with her life. Withinthistraditional liberalartsframework,theWellesleycur- riculum isdynamicandresponsivetosocialchangeandnewfields ofstudy.Thedramaticexpansionofinformationofthelastdecades has led to an increasingly interdisciplinary course ofstudy. Single majorsintraditionaldisciplineshavebeenjoined bydoublemajors and specially designed interdisciplinary and interdepartmental majors. Some departments also offer minors. One of the first liberal arts colleges to establish a separate Computer Science Department and Computer Science major, Wellesley remains at the forefront of technological development. 6 TheCollege Students and faculty in all disciplines use the College's academic computingfacilitiesintheircoursesandresearch. Facultymembers are pioneering applications of artificial intelligence and teaching technology in such fields as philosophy, music, history, and lan- guages. The Knapp Media and Technology Center provides state- of-the-art technology for students in courses ranging from multi- media language instruction to graphic arts. Thewell-knownWellesley Centers forWomen, composed ofthe Center for Research on Women and the Stone Center for Developmental Services and Studies, produce work of national importance about issues facingwomen incontemporary society. The Wellesley-MIT cross-registration program allows students to combine the strengths of these two outstanding institutions whileremaininginresidenceontheirowncampuses.Wellesleystu- dents enroll in a variety of MIT courses including architectural design,financial accounting,computerscience,engineering,math- ematics, and the sciences. Wellesley students construct individual majors in such subjects as urban planning, engineering, and lin- guistics,whichdrawontheresourcesofdepartmentsatbothMIT and Wellesley. TheTwelve CollegeExchangeProgram brings men andwomen from member colleges to Wellesley for a semester or a year, and enables Wellesley students to live and study on another campus. TheCollegealsooffersexchangeswithnearbyBrandeisUniversity; Spelman College, a distinguished Black liberal arts college in Atlanta, Georgia; and Mills College in Oakland, California. In addition,Wellesleystudentsareencouragedtospendasemesteror a year abroad in programs at many institutions throughout the world. Financial aid for study abroad, although limited, is avail- able through Wellesley. The Wellesley faculty is a community of recognized scholars. Theyincludescientists,artists,andpoliticalandeconomicanalysts. Dedicatedtoteaching,theybringavastrangeofacademicandpro- fessionalintereststotheCollege.Manymembersofthefacultylive on or near the campus. They are committed to all aspects of life in the Wellesley community and are available to students outside ofthe classroom. There is one faculty member for every ten students. The aver- age class size ranges from 18 to 21 students. A fewpopular intro- ductory courses enroll more than 100, but these classes routinely breakintosmall discussiongroups underthedirectionofa faculty member. Seminars typically bring together 15 to 18 students and a professorto investigateclearlydefined areas ofinterest. Thelow student-faculty ratio offers an excellent opportunity for students to undertake individual work with faculty or honors projects and research. TheCollege 7 Excellent academic facilities support learning at Wellesley. Students have access to virtually all the collections on campus through a computerized library system totaling over 1.3 million items.Amongthespecialholdingsareaworld-renownedBrowning Collection, a Book Arts Collection, and a Rare Book Collection. InterlibraryloansthroughtheBostonLibraryConsortiumaugment the College's own holdings. Wellesley's strength in the sciences dates to the nineteenth cen- tury, when the College's physics laboratory was the second in the country (the firstwasatMIT).TheScienceCenter brings together all the science departments, including mathematics and computer science,inacontemporarysettingthatfostersinterdisciplinarydis- cussion and study. Laboratories are completely equipped for a wide variety of fields. The Center also includes an observatory and an extensive complex ofgreenhouses. Students in the arts find excellent facilities in the Jewett Arts Center and the Davis Museum and Cultural Center. Wellesley recognizes that classroom activities and studying are onlypartofacollegeeducation.Theresidencehallsystemnotonly provides a pleasantandcomfortable placeto live butseeksto inte- grate academic and extracurricular life through educational pro- grams. Residence lifeisadministered inseveralways, rangingfrom dormitories staffed by professional HeadsofHouse tostudent-run cooperatives. Formanystudents,thelessonslearnedcompetingontheathletic field,publishingthe WellesleyNews,orparticipatinginaWellesley- sponsored summer internship in Washington D.C. have lifelong impact.TheCollegeencouragesself-expressionthroughmorethan 150 established student organizations, as well as any interest that a student may choose to pursue alone or with a group of friends. Wellesley also supports those students who investigate religious issuesandthought.TheOfficeofReligiousandSpiritualLifeoffers religious programs in many faiths, including denominational ser- vices for those who wish to participate. As a small community, Wellesley's quality of life depends upon the involvement and commitment ofeach of its constituents. For thisreason,studentsparticipateindecisionmakinginnearlyevery aspect of College life. They serve, frequently as voting members, on every majorcommittee ofthe Board ofTrustees, including the InvestmentCommittee,aswellastheAcademicCouncil,theBoard ofAdmission,andthe Committeeon Curriculum and Instruction. In academic departments, they are voting members of the cur- riculum and faculty search committees. They also serve on com- mittees that set policy for residential life and govern Schneider Center, the focus ofmuch student activity on campus. 8 The College