#TBT in the Archives 3/19/15

Ship students walking across campus, 1968

In honor of Women's History Month, this week Archives & Special Collections would like to explore the social changes that occurred on Shippensburg's campus in the late 1960s and early 1970s. While Shippensburg State College students did not participate in many of the radical movements and protests that occurred at larger universities, there was a gradual change in social norms at the local level.

On March 19, 1970, the Student Senate unanimously abolished Shippensburg State College's dress code. Until this date, the campus dress code, which was outlined in the student handbook, required students to appear in the "high standard of dress." Men and women were required to dress conservatively everywhere on campus except in residence halls and during athletic events. White t-shirts, bermuda and short-shorts, sweatshirts and other "casual" wear were deemed innapropriate. Although the dress code pertained to both women and men, there were stricter regulations for women such as the "no slacks" rule. Dresses and skirts were considered appropriate for women and one alumna recalls that women had to wear trench coats to cover up their slacks if they happened to be wearing them in the wrong place. In the winter time, ladies kept warm by wearing knee socks and tights--these regulations seem unimaginable by today's standards.

The Cumberland yearbooks provide a visual depiction of the transformation that took place on campus after 1970, showing the evolution of the change in campus culture. Female students ditched skirts and knee socks for shorts and slacks, which became more prevalent in the mid-late 1970s. By the 1980s, the casual wear that permeates college campuses today essentially became the norm. The photograph above from 1968 shows two female students walking on campus in slacks and bermuda shorts. We do not know where these women were walking to and from, but the textbooks in their hands indicate they could have been studying. Or maybe these women were "radicals," displaying their disagreement with the campus dress code. Evidence such as this reminds us that we need to question our sources. Although the dress code was still on the books in 1968, clearly these regulations were not always followed in practice.

Want to learn more about Ship's history? No need to wait for the next Throwback Thursday! Visit Archives & Special Collections during our open research hours, or contact us via e-mail: specialcollections@ship.edu or phone: 717-477-1516.