Sarah Lawrence College represents to me a community of people who are constantly striving for better conditions and wider opportunities. In academic and extracurricular activities the best and nothing but the best is sought after.
The college is on the steep but beautiful stairway leading to an ideal. It is a long climb, but a positive one, because this college has the spirit and the will of the entire community behind it, pushing it upward, step by step, toward perfection.
Cooperation is vital to our success — if we have a united group we will be stronger than if we try as individuals to stand alone. Here again the stairway may be used to make my point clear. We could all try individually to climb the steps to an ideal of a perfect college, but what if we should become fatigued and the way seem steep and difficult? We would stumble and falter upward, finally reaching the ideal too exhausted to appreciate the victory. And wliat a pity when the way could be made so pleasant by merely gripping each other’s hands firmly and climbing together! Those who even so much as tripped would instantly be assisted by the others in gaining their balance.
There are other colleges watching us make the ascent and studying in their ethics and government classes every move that we make. At first dubious as to our progress, they are now astounded, for we have not made many false steps.
Let us watch these steps, take them slowly and consider each one so that we will not slip nor stumble.
We must remember that this glistening staircase was extended before us, dazaling in its immaculate beauty. We should tread carefully — so carefully that those who will climb up after us will find the steps unblemished, destitute of nicks in the marble strength and stains on the alabaster whiteness. The ultimate result will be that those who succeed us will feel a personal responsibility in upholding so inspiring an example. Herein lies the foundation of the establishment of tradition at Sarah Lawrence College.
This piece was first published in Issue 2 of The Keynote, an early student journal, in December 1928.