Collegian
Page 8
The Ben Lane -
by James Martin
Collegian Editor
Throughout the course of it's
nearly forty year long history, the
Bchrend College has undergone a
multitude of changes. Perhaps no
one is more cognizant of these
changes than Mr. Benjaman Lane.
Ben Lane fast came to Bchrend over
30 years ago as an instructor in
English. Since then he has
performed a wide variety of tasks
ranging from teaching German to
being Dean of Student Affairs, to
teaching classes in the arts as he
does today.
In whatever capacity he has
filled Lane has always served as a
change initiating catalyst. Today in
his role as a part-time faculty
member, Lane feels strongly about
reflecting on Bchrcnd's past and the
changes that have occurred. Widely
loved and respected by faculty and
students 'alike, Ben Lane is
considered to be one of Behrend's
finest resources.
Due to his vast knowledge and
willingness to impart it, we were
eager to sit down with him and see
what we could learn.
"This was all small trees here...
there was nothing," Lane began,
remembering Behrend's appearance
when he arrived on the scene in the
early 1950'5. Indeed, a 1988
student, complaining about the lack
of facilities would get little
sympathy from any of the original
160 students. "At one point," Lane
recalls, "the Glennhill farmhouse
housed the schools business office,
cafeteria, dispensary, residence hall,
drafting room and girls laundry."
Behrend's desolation seems
humorous in retrospect. "We were
literally at the edge of terra
incognita here," jokes Lane. "You
know those maps where it says
Terra Incognita - over here; well we
were right on the edge."
The construction of Erie Hall in
1952 was a landmark both for
Rape:
By Debra L. Malone
Collegian Staff Writer
Rape is a personal assault, a
horrible violation of your most
precious possession, your body.
The bruises and physical pain of a
rape are, however, minor in
comparison to the mental anguish
which the victim must endure. A
rape victim suffers all too often in
silence, attempting to hide her
shame under a guise of normalcy.
This silent suffering is not
necessary; Rape Crisis is available
for anyone who desires the help.
Rape Crisis has been present
here in Erie for fifteen years. They
provide several services for a rape
victim with complete
confidentiality and without charge.
There is a 24 hour hotline, 870-
7087, which offers crisis
intervention and immediate
assistance to the victim. A Rape
Crisis counselor will support the
victim through any medical
treatment, police interviews, and
legal proceedings. The counselor
will make the victim aware of her
rights, but the decision as to what
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Behrend and the University system
as a whole. Eric Hall was the first
building in the entire system paid
for entirely by public contributions.
At that time the university did not
have the authority to commission
new construction. They had to be
authorized by the G.S.A., (General
State Authority), which took a
great deal of time. Erie Hall was a
breakthrough in that it avoided the
constraints of the G.S.A. by not
requiring state funding.. At that
time getting funding for any new
project was nearly impossible.
"Thank heavens things have
changed," said Lane.
Lane recalls other obstacles in
planning Bchrend's first new
dormitory, Perry Hall. Original
plans for Perry called for it to be
much larger than it is now , but to
serve the same number of students.
In helping plan the structure, Lane
learned that change would not come
easily. The building was supposed
to have something of a U shape and
had a large two story glass rotunda
in the middle. Upon seeing the
plans the Penn State official in
charge immediately applied his red
pencil, crossing out the rotunda
and the projections on either side of
the building. "The architect almost
fainted," said Lane. He bounced
back with 'But what about the
esthetics of the building?'
"Joe," he replied,"We're not
worried about esthetics at Penn
State."
Another notable change is the
evolution of the school's library.
Originally located in what is now
the Memorial Room, the library
traveled to the site of the present
studio theater before occupying the
entire second floor of Turnbull
Hall. Ironically the Reed Union
Building, the site of the present
library was never intended to house
a library. Surprisingly the room
was originally intended to serve as
a ballroom, to accommodate the
frequent dances that were once an
What about
The Victim?
action, if any, will be taken, is
entirely up to the victim.
According to Angela Porfilio,
the Rapc Crisis Community
Education Coordinator, medical
treatment is always encouraged, but
whether or not the rape is reported
to the police is the choice of the
victim. Porfilio admitted that
prosecution is difficult in rape
cases, and is very difficult in the
case of date rape.
"Date rape is the most common
sexual assault, but the least
reported" as stated by Porfilio.
Surveys done in the past show the
most vulnerable ages for date rape
to be senior high school and first
year college. Current statistics
show that 15To of all rapes are clone
by a close friend or date. Thcsc
statistics arc not absolute, however,
due to the large number of
unreported cases. Why do so many
women choose not to report this
horrendous crime against their own
person?
According to Porfilio the victim
undergoes several reactions
following a rape. She feels guilt,
important aspect of college life
"All student Unions had dancc
Halls," observed Lane. However the
library needed to grow and the dance
hall, almost outdated before it was
even built, was the logical place for
the library to go.
The acquisition of the dance
hall's space was facilitated by the
decline in popularity of big band
dance hall music. "The big band
sound didn't last much longer after
the second world war; then Elvis
Presley and the Beatles came along
and changed everything forever,"
said Lane.
Perhaps less obvious, but of
greater importance are the changes
in attitude that have occurred. The
university has not always spent
money as freely as it does
today." You didn't ever use long
distance you always wrote letters,"
emphasizes Lane.
According to Lane inter-campus
communication really
started,(symbolically at least), with
the school's acquisition of a
dilapidated old Station wagon. "We
thought we were absolutely
swingin when we got that!" laughs
Lane. On a more serious note he
pointed out that it made inter
collegiate communication
possible and that a real case could
be made for what the old car
symbolized.
Behrend has grown and changed
tremendously over the years. Ben
Lane credits students for much of
that change. He wondered aloud
where the school would be .:!if it
hadn't been for the students and
their insistence and courage and
their raw guts to reach out and to do
things when their was nothing to
do."
Having literally, 'nothing to do.'
has long been a problem for
Behrcnd students. The Reed Union
Building was built to address that
very problem. While some students
still complain about the lack of
diversions, Lane remembers the
that perhaps she did something io
encourage the attack, and shame
that this happened to her. She may
question lier own judgement, was
there something in this man she
missed? Did she place herself in an
unsafe situation? Eventually these
feelings become fears, fears that
may cripple her emotionally.
Rape Crisis is available to help
with these reactions through
counseling. Counseling is
available for anyone who desires it,
again without charge. The victim
is free to participate in as many
counseling sessions as she feels she
needs. Porifilio states "for some
this is one session, for others it
may be six months to a year. The
length of time depends entirely on
the victims needs."
Rape Crisis is also available for
Prevention Awareness, and
presented a Rape Crisis & Date
Rape program at Bchrend on
February 11th at the Niagara Dorm.
Angela Porfilio presented the
program and stated there was a good
turn out with many interesting
questions. She stated, that with the
help of Todd Allen of Bchrend
Security, she hopes to be doing
more programs for the student
body. Anyone wishing further
information, or in need of one of
the many services offered through
Rape Crisis, can contact any Rape
Crisis counselor at 313 Wallace
Si, Erie, or call 870-7087.
Tempus
Layout
Begins
by Darrell Freund
Collegian Staff Writer
Mid April will see the advent of
the Behrend literary magazine,
Tempus. This year's issue,
according to advisor Chris Dubbs,
will be the "strongest publication"
yet.
Poems and short stories from
over thirty Behrend students were
chosen to represent this year's
literary composition.
According to Kurt Steiner, the
editor of Tempus, this year's
Tempus has a wide range of
themes. "Some of the poems are -
Behtelid Story
time that a lone pool table was the
highlight of possible activities. A
donated pool table, located in the
basement of Eric Hall quickly
became one of the hottest spots on
campus. "It was a bonanza," said
Lane. "It was something to do."
But even this form of entertainment
was to be short-lived. Lane
remembers that Frank Simes,
visiting Dean of Men from
University park took a dim view of
the pool table. "He thought the
pool table was immoral and should
"..When we reached
300 enrollment—we
thought we were Notre
Dame."
be removed." Behrend has come a
long way.
So what direction does Lane sec
Behrend taking in the future.
"Someone has to sit down and
decide whether we want to maintain
a small college in size. Three
thousand is just wonderful- I
think,or whether we want to
become what SUNY at Buffalo has
become...certainly we have the.land
here , But there is also a marvelous
intimacy here ," said Lane. Behrend
has long been unsure about where
it's going in terms of size. "I
remember many years ago, we said
when we reached 2 thousand -
enrollment would be cut off,"said
Lane. " 1 remember when we
reached 300 enrollment and we
thought we were Notre Dame," he
adds.
Whether or not the school's
enrollment grows, Lane feels there
is a need for more buildings to be
built. "If we did not get another
student on this campus, we still
need a recreational facility and a
library, I don't think there is any
question about that."
Whatever direction Bchrend takes
in the future, there can be no
question that Ben Lane helped it get
to where it is today.
ViewPitin.t . Lift
by Terry Anthony and Jim
Hale
Collegian Staff Writers
Hello, Erieland! Wow ! When
we asked for you to write in and let
us know what's on your mind, we
never expected to get such an
onslaught of cards and letters from
our fans. We'll try to answer each
of them personally, but we also
wanted to print a few of the more
memorable ones:
Dear Jim and Terry,
I am so depressed. Nobody
likes me. I never get any mail. The
only mail I ever get has Ed
McMahon's ugly mug on it. Please
tell me how I can keep the inches
of dust out of my mailbox. Signed,
Postal P.O.W.
Dear P.0.W., Believe it or not,
we used to have the same problem
until we discovered some nifty
tricks to assure us of a continuous
mail flow. First, we never pay our
utility bills on time. Next, we
watch a lot of late night T.V. and
take advantage of the many mail
order offers. Why, we are now the
proud owners of the world's largest
collection of amazing ginsu knife
sets, and have received 25 of "The
Best of Box Car Willie" albums, as
well as a fine collection of
"Zamphir's Magic Flute" on 8-track
tape. Finally, we give ourselves
that personal touch by writing
letters to ourselves with return
addresses from famous people.
Remember, creativity is the key to
keep your mailbox-mate off guard.
Dear wonder-writers,
I am your biggest fan. You
guys are so funny and know just
how to make me tingle all over.
I've been admiring you from afar,
and think, yins have the two cutest
tushes on campus. You smell good
too. There are not enough adjectives
to describe real hunks like you. I
think I am in love with you, Jim.
And I'd kill for just one night with
Terry. XOXOXOXOX, The guy
who sits behind you in Bio. 102.
features
photo by: Marybeth Zawistoski
Ben Lane: A remaining faculty
member from Behrend's early
days. Today Lane is pleased to
see students reflecting on the
way things were.
P.S. I am also fond of gerbils -
maybe I could meet your pet,
Spike?
Dear Biologically Confused.
We do appreciate the complement
regarding Jim's Lush (it's nice to
know you love him for his mind).
However, no matter how much we
may joke around, we arc hopelessly
heterosexual and will forever be
excluded fromßehrend's "10%". If
you must continue with your
fantasies, we'd appreciate it very
much if you'd do it from
afar how does Tulsa, Oklahoma
sound? Oh, and we'd suggest you
avoid Spike, the killer gerbil. He
gets real nasty when confined in
small, dark places.
Dear super studs and all-around
good guys,
I am a social outcast. I read
your column religiously and think
you are the ones to catapult me to
social stardom.l have followed all
of your suggestions outlined in
your book, "101 Ways to Pick Up
Babes", and work out regularly to
the beat of your exercise video. But
I still find myself alone each night
when *those leWd thoughts creep
into my head. Can you help me?
Signed, Caught Red-handed
Dear. Rcd, So you're the one
who bought the book? We
appreciate your idolization of us,
something not uncommon in our
careers: But instead of writing down
a loooong listof things to help you
be more like us, we suggest that
you run out and get tickets to our
upcoming film debut, "Stooges to
Studs", a dramatic portrayal of two
would-be writers on their quest to
be social celebrities. It is a thrilling
autobiography of our own young
lives. In the meantime, we suggest
you ditch the stone-washed jeans
and argyle sweater. Polyester slacks
and paisley turtlenecks are vogue
these days. •
Hey Dudd,
I am, 'like; totally out of
touch with my inner being. My
skateboard was ripped off and my
biorhythms are outa synch with
the stars. Life seems like a
nebulous web of metaphysical
wheat germ. Then, to top it all off,
I hear my favorite band, Intestinal
Slime, is ditchin' their gigs and
breakin' up. Bummer dudes. I even
broke my toe playing hacky-sack.
P.S. I'm going to vote for Jim
Morrison for President. Signed,
Confused in the Cosmos. •
Dear Cosmos, We can spot
your problem right away. Give up
on the biorhythms. Your problem
is simple- you are a commie and a
loser! John Wayne would roll over
in his grave! What you need is a
good dose of Capitalism. You
Liberal Artsy-fartsy types make us
sick! We hope that a pigeon gooeys
on your surfboard. But we'll try to
remain open-minded about this
whole affair. Our advice to you is
simple- get a job! Come on, say it
with us. Job, J-0-B. Work, what a
concept, huh?
We hope that you've enjoyed
reading these letters as much as we
enjoyed _sharing them with you.
Once again, we'd like to thank you
for your. cards and letters. Keep
them coming. For those of you out
there that can't write, you may just
send beer, women, or money. We
must also ask that you please write
or type: legibly. Letters written in
crayon will no longer be accepted.
Well, we really must be going_
We have a busy agenda to keep.
First to D.C. to party with Nancy,
Ron, and the boys, then to Texas to
see the border patrol beat up illegal
aliens, and finally to . Alaska to
make sure the Eskimos are only
rubbing noses. Until, next time,
don't take any wooden Indians, and
if you must spit into the wind,
duck!