THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1994, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Saturday, December 3, 1994 TAG: 9412030269
SECTION: LOCAL PAGE: B7 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: ASSOCIATED PRESS
DATELINE: STAUNTON LENGTH: Medium: 67 lines
Interest among college-bound girls in a military training program the all-female Mary Baldwin College is offering appears to be scant, according to high school guidance counselors.
The program is being offered as the state's alternative to admitting women to the all-male Virginia Military Institute, a policy that has been challenged by women seeking admission to VMI.
``I have very, very few students who are interested in preparing themselves with a military career,'' said William Brown, a counselor at the private Potomac School in McLean.
The program, approved in May by a federal judge, is under review by the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Richmond.
Blacksburg High School guidance counselor Shelley Blumenthal said there is a need for a leadership program for women. But she believes interest in Mary Baldwin's program will wane once the novelty wears off.
Said Radford High School's Carolyn Canada: ``It's too new. I think until they actually have students in it, knowing exactly how their daily life goes, I think the public perception is on hold.''
Mary Baldwin's admissions director said such reactions don't surprise her.
Some guidance counselors know about the program; some don't. Recruiting students is a complicated business, combining mailings, phone calls and campus visits, Patricia LeDonne said.
``It takes time to get these things going,'' said Mike Bissell, the VMI liaison to the Mary Baldwin planners. ``In the next two or three months, a lot of people will be getting educated.''
``When people visit institutions of higher education, I think they want to find out what the students going through it feel,'' he said.
Mary Baldwin will appoint a director for the leadership institute next month and will open the program for business next fall. About 50 people have applied to run the program, said Heather Wilson, Mary Baldwin's dean of students and acting director of the program.
According to papers filed in U.S. District Court last month, one student had applied for admission to the program four months before the February deadline.
Christina Cabe, a Mary Baldwin spokeswoman, said the college is looking for ``the right students'' to ensure the program's long-term success.
VMI is helping in such ways as coordinating ROTC programs and setting up transportation to VMI, where the training will be held, Bissell said.
``We're not trying to distance in any way, shape or form,'' Bissell said. ``I would see in the future quite a lot of potential sharing.''
The VMI Foundation since last year has donated $315,000 to the leadership program. Of that, $96,000 is paying for recruiter Lori Esch and a recruitment program. The funding has paid for summer salaries for four faculty members and two deans who worked through vacation to come up with a curriculum, plus travel and conferences, Cabe said.
Another $150,000 in planning money is due Jan. 1, even if VMI's legal efforts to preserve its gender segregation fail. If VMI wins in court, a permanent $5.4 million endowment would provide Mary Baldwin with $22,760 monthly beginning in September.
If VMI loses, both sides predict, the case will wind up before the U.S. Supreme Court.
KEYWORDS: VMI by CNB