Court Street on a Friday night might as well be a runway in Milan: girls strutting their stuff, some in beautiful dresses with killer heels, others sporting high-waisted skirts and knee-high boots. Although this is typical for most weekends, the going out attire in Athens wasn’t always so fashion forward.
“Never did I see people wearing dresses uptown in January,” said Rachael Larimore, 38, a 1995 graduate. The trends then were of bodysuits, American Apparel style, and often paired with jeans. “Bodysuits are terrible shirts for going out. Onesies for adults? Awful to go to the bathroom in,” Larimore said.
When looking at the typical Ohio University female student through the years, trends in fashion aren’t the only thing that’s changed. When Margaret Boyd became the first female student to graduate from OU in 1873, the university first catalogued her name as M. Boyd in fear of disapproval from the general public. Once they realized there was no opposition from the community, her full name was printed.
It goes without saying that we have come a long way since then with female students now outnumbering male students 55 to 45 percent.
“One good thing about being in college now is that women have more opportunities and we live in a much more progressive society,” Olivia Hammond, 19, said. “Being the first in my immediate family to graduate college, I feel the pressure of having to do extremely well to make a better life for myself.”
Although gender still plays a huge role in the workforce today, Larimore never paid attention to gender issues. She previously worked as a sportswriter at NBA.com and NFL.com, and is now the managing editor at Slate Magazine.
“I intended to go into a male-dominated field, and worked in one for a while, but I never wanted special consideration for my gender. I wanted my ability to write about sports to speak for itself,” Larimore said.
From the fight to enroll in public institutions, to the civil rights movement, to basic reproduction rights, the important issues for young women in college have evolved throughout the years. And today it seems to be a rat race for the best internship or job.
“Classes and student organizations at OU helped me to be prepared for my career,” says Sharon Metzung, 30, class of 2003. “I learned about a wide variety of communications professions and was able to have hands-on experiences.”
Metzung, a Publications & Graphics Manager at Lake Metroparks, did not imagine she would end up where she is now. After entering the E.W. Scripps School of Journalism, she focused on magazine writing until she realized she had an innate strength for magazine design and publication.
A huge difference in the college experience now, however, is in the change of the media over the years, such as the growth of social media, more specifically the dreaded Facebook. Metzung advises against posting too much information, warning, “Don’t post things that you wouldn’t want your boss to see–because believe me, they can find it.” That means untagging those bar crawl and Snookie-like pictures immediately, collegiates.
Although going on picture patrol every Sunday night is becoming typical for our generation, something that’s remained a constant at OU is the love of the town of Athens and the sense of community here.
“My favorite part of OU is the friendly atmosphere,” said Katelin Allenbach, 19, a Young-Adult Integrated Social Studies Education major. “I rarely have any unpleasant experiences when going to parties where I know few people or when entering a new class.”
The OU party school reputation is always a topic for discussion, a sore spot for some and a source of pride for others. “I admit, I was proud of it. If you’re going to do something, you should do it well!” Larimore said.
As for Hammond and Allenbach, both are excited about the future. Hammond, a community health major, expressed a desire to stay in Ohio and eventually pursue her Masters degree. Upon graduation, Allenbach would like to join the Peace Corp and eventually teach high school history. Right now though, they are content to focus on enjoying their time at OU. “This is my ideal college experience,” Allenbach said.