{"id":2779,"date":"2023-07-11T15:00:00","date_gmt":"2023-07-11T15:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/libblogs.luc.edu\/wla\/?p=2779"},"modified":"2026-01-12T21:33:59","modified_gmt":"2026-01-12T21:33:59","slug":"parietals-debate-at-mundelein","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/libblogs.luc.edu\/wla\/2023\/07\/11\/parietals-debate-at-mundelein\/","title":{"rendered":"Parietals Debate at Mundelein"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Dialogue <\/em>was first published in 1972 to give Mundelein College* students a voice to discuss their concerns in a public forum. The first publication lists \u201cthe communication of ideas\u201d as Dialogue\u2019s<\/em> \u201cmost important function.\u201d The staff kept folders for submissions in multiple locations so members of the community could raise their concerns anonymously.  <\/p>\n\n\n

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Dialogue, February 28, 1972<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n

One of the very first issues raised was that of the dorm \u201cparietals,\u201d in Mundelein\u2019s case, the rules regarding men visitors to women\u2019s dorms. Many of Coffey Hall\u2019s residents felt that the current regulations were unfair and outdated. Incoming freshmen felt that \u201cthey should be permitted to entertain friends in their \u2018homes\u2019, and to deny this right is unfair, a violation of personal rights.\u201d Students bemoaned the fact that they were legal adults who were allowed to vote but not allowed to have male friends over.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The third issue of Dialogue <\/em>announced that the issue of parietals was going to be brought before the college senate by the \u201cparietals committee\u201d composed of concerned students who had, the week before, polled and interviewed dorm residents to get their opinions and discuss parietal hours. The committee urged students to show up to the meeting and share their thoughts.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The next issue fails to mention parietals, which might seem like it is suggesting a failure to implement any changes. However, in the final issue of the 1971-72 school year, Dialogue <\/em>released a revised outline of the parietals policy as follows:  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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1) Coffey Hall – non-visitation areas: floor 1 and west wing on floor 2<\/em> <\/p>\n\n\n\n

2) Coffey Hall – visitation hours for weekends only on floors 3, 4, and middle and east<\/em> wing on 2.<\/em> <\/p>\n\n\n\n

3) Northland – visitation seven days a week<\/em> <\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

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Dialogue, May 18, 1972<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

This wasn\u2019t a free-for-all. Even when visitation was allowed seven days a week there were still hours to abide by. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Coffey Hall: <\/em>Friday<\/em> 6pm-1:30am<\/em>, Saturday<\/em> 12pm-1:30am<\/em>, Sunday<\/em> 12pm-10pm<\/em> <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Northland:\u00a0Monday-Thursday<\/em> 4pm-11:30pm<\/em>, Friday and Saturday<\/em> 12pm-1:30am<\/em>, Sunday<\/em> 12pm-11:30pm<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Residents were responsible for monitoring their guest. As these rules list, \u201cMales on the floors must always be in company of a resident,\u201d and \u201cShe must ask him to leave if his conduct disturbs the other residents.\u201d Residents\u2019 penalties for their guests overstaying their welcome included a two-week suspension of visiting privileges and, if repeated often, would require an appearance before the Hall Judiciary Board. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Residents could be suspended from the dorm for: <\/p>\n\n\n\n

a) guest\u2019s illegal entry; b) failure to sign a guest out; c) having male guests in non-visitation room or area<\/em> <\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

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Dialogue, November 17, 1972, page 7<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

These rules were polished and put in place in October 1972. Dialogue <\/em>staff interviewed Mary Lou Stege, Director of Residence, who was pleased with the new parietals. She said that she\u2019d \u201crather see girls bringing their guys into the relatively safe atmosphere of a dorm [than] have them walking around Chicago streets at night.\u201d Once the novelty of male visitors decreased, the pace slowed considerably. In addition, there was a noted noise level decrease in the dorms. As the writer said, \u201cMary Lou attributes this quieting effect to the fact that \u2018the residents are not as prone to rowdiness in the halls with guys around.\u2019\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Mundelein\u2019s parietal rules continued to be mentioned in later issues, such as this article from 1973 discussing Coffey Hall\u2019s tenth anniversary.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Dialogue, May 11, 1973, page 4<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

* Mundelein College<\/a>, founded and operated by the Sisters of Charity of the Blessed Virgin Mary (BVM), provided education to women from 1930 until 1991, when it affiliated with Loyola University Chicago.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sources: Mundelein Now<\/em>, Mundelein College Paper Records: Digitized files mc_now_0006, mc_now_0014, mc_now_0018, mc_now_0025. <\/sub><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Brooke is a first-year student in the Public History MA at Loyola University. She has a BA in History from Macalester College in St. Paul, Minnesota. Her research interests include medical history and women\u2019s history. Her non-history hobbies include quilting, hiking, reading, and her pet snails.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\nLoyola University Chicago’s Women and Leadership Archives Blog is designed to provide a positive environment for the Loyola community to discuss important issues and ideas. Differences of opinion are encouraged. We invite comments in response to posts and ask that you write in a civil and respectful manner. All comments will be screened for tone and content and must include the first and last name of the author and a valid email address. The appearance of comments on the blog does not imply the University’s endorsement or acceptance of views expressed. Questions? Please contact the WLA at wlarchives@LUC.edu<\/a>. <\/em><\/span>\n
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Dialogue was first published in 1972 to give Mundelein College* students a voice to discuss their concerns in a public forum. The first publication lists \u201cthe communication of ideas\u201d as Dialogue\u2019s \u201cmost important function.\u201d The staff kept folders for submissions … Continue reading →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":103,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[1],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/libblogs.luc.edu\/wla\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2779"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/libblogs.luc.edu\/wla\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/libblogs.luc.edu\/wla\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/libblogs.luc.edu\/wla\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/103"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/libblogs.luc.edu\/wla\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2779"}],"version-history":[{"count":8,"href":"https:\/\/libblogs.luc.edu\/wla\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2779\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2797,"href":"https:\/\/libblogs.luc.edu\/wla\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2779\/revisions\/2797"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/libblogs.luc.edu\/wla\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2779"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/libblogs.luc.edu\/wla\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2779"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/libblogs.luc.edu\/wla\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2779"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}