Alum Interview: Carol Garrard (Class of ‘69)
Image of an English examination given in the fall of 1965 at the College of William and Mary
As students at William and Mary deal with unprecedented circumstances due to the COVID-19 pandemic, alum Carol Garrard (‘69) reflects on her experiences and the ways in which the college has evolved.
As we all know, this semester has been anything but ordinary. For those of us who are seniors, it has been especially hard to cope with the fact that we were unable to spend our last weeks of college on campus. Yet, although this moment feels surreal, I have been trying to use this time to reflect on all that I love about William and Mary. Prior to classes transitioning to a virtual format, I had been put in touch with an alum, named Carol Garrard (‘69), and I was inspired by her story and what she experienced during her time at William and Mary. As a way to reconnect with the campus, but also to understand how it has changed throughout the years, I reached out to her.
Carol Garrard was a student at William and Mary from 1965 to 1969, a time of social and political evolution at the college, and in the U.S. as a whole. I was amazed by the thoughtful ways in which Garrard was able to reflect on the context of her time at William and Mary. Regarding the introduction of African-American students to the college, she says “I don’t remember ever even seeing any of the three African-American students whom the alumni magazine claims were there. They must have ‘walked invisible.’ It was all lily white, and shame on all of us for our collective blindness to that fact.”
“…it was all lily white, and shame on all of us for our collective blindness to that fact.”
Garrard talked not only of the ways in which “unconscious and overt racism was ignored,” but also about her experiences as a woman. During her time at William and Mary, there were “in loco parentis” rules in place for women at the college. Garrard recalled one moment where she was ten minutes late returning to her dorm on a Thursday night, and said she was given a house trial, where she was told how badly she behaved and was “grounded” for the next weekend. The administration took the virginity of its female students very seriously,” she says frankly. However, in the classroom, Garrard never felt like she was looked down upon. She says: “everybody knew the girls who went to William and Mary were intelligent and there was nothing held against you for being a girl.”
While we had an engaging discussion about the dynamic between men and women and the sexual revolution of the 70’s, we also discussed the topic of sexuality at William and Mary. Garrard said, “I’m sure now students who are gay have support, but when I was there, I’m not sure that most girls at William and Mary knew what being gay was.” She believed one of the girls in her sorority may have been gay, and said: “I realized everything must’ve been so lonely being in the closet. William and Mary forced its gay students into the closet. I think people turned inward and it caused great loneliness and unhappiness.”
As we discussed how things were harder for students during this time, we also touched on the former culture for freshmen. Mrs. Garrard talked about “Duc Week” (short for introductory), a period during the beginning of the fall semester where freshmen were given a set of rules they had to follow, facts about the college they had to learn, and beanies they were required to wear. She ended up mailing me the sheet she had kept, which detailed all of the rules of being a “duc” and all the ways in which upperclassmen had control over the freshmen during this period. “Can you believe it?” she asked me.
The “Duc Week” sheet Garrard was given during her first semester as a freshman.
We also discussed the English department and the difference between our experiences as English students. A devoted archivist, Garrard had also kept the question she was given on her first English exam, sending a copy of it to me. The essay question, which asked the reader to discuss the idea that “all existence is a self-deception” was unlike anything I had encountered during my time as a student in the English department. Garrard jokingly said, “We all just sat there and looked at it. That was the most nebulous thing I had ever looked at until I got my PhD.”
After two hours had flown by, Carol Garrard and I started winding down our conversation. Throughout the phone call, she had asked me all about the current culture at William and Mary and the ways in which it has changed since her time as a student. I had told her about my positive experiences being a queer person on campus and the ways in which many students try to have a hand in activism and making change at William and Mary. Garrard was extremely pleased to hear this. “I’m so glad that William and Mary is changing for the better, and it sounds like you’ve had some wonderful experiences as a student there. It’s great to hear that the students are so involved.”
“I’m so glad that William and Mary is changing for the better, and it sounds like you’ve had some wonderful experiences as a student there. It’s great to hear that the students are so involved.”
Once I had hung up the phone, I began to think about how right she was. I was lucky that I had joined a campus community where the students were so active and dedicated to changing things they thought were wrong in the world. Hearing Carol Garrard’s stories made me miss my campus even more, but also feel grateful for the time that I’ve had and the people I’ve been able to meet. We may not be able to finish this semester exactly the way we wanted, but it’s encouraging to think about how future students will make this campus even better in the years to come.
Originally published in Inside Tucker Hall Volume II, Issue 2