色情视频

This story appears in the of 360: The Magazine of 色情视频.

B.J. Nystrom (鈥�66) never set out to reshape San Diego State College鈥檚 curriculum. In 1967, the political science graduate had returned to SDSC as a master鈥檚 student, and he just wanted to teach an informal class on eviction law to his friends and their friends. The self-described 鈥淓ast County redneck鈥� from La Mesa had found a place within the progressive student movement that pervaded college campuses in the 1960s, and his friend Ann Monkerud had an idea for how he could teach his class: Start a whole new college.

In the late 1950s, San Francisco State College had pioneered an Experimental College, with courses taught by volunteers, enrollment open to anyone who wanted to attend, and no fees. Monkerud wanted to bring something similar to SDSC and Nystrom was up for the challenge.

For the Experimental College to work, they needed space, which meant going through official channels to get approval to meet in classrooms. Nystrom put his political science background to use handling the administrative side of things while Monkerud handled the academics and put together a course catalog. Officially, the Experimental College became a student organization. The late, highly influential political science professor Henry Janssen served as its requisite faculty advisor.

Two courses were offered initially: 鈥淗istory of Vietnam鈥� and 鈥淯nderground Newspaper Reporting.鈥� The Experimental College鈥檚 inaugural class included 28 students.

Though many colleges and universities across the country kept a nervous, watchful eye over similar student movements, Nystrom recalls SDSC鈥檚 administration being generally supportive of their efforts.

鈥淲e had nobody breathing down our necks,鈥� he said. 鈥淣ot too much oversight or interference.鈥�

By the fall semester of 1968, the course catalog had grown to 22 classes. That spring, there were 38. By 1970, there were 54 classes and approximately 1,200 students attending them. (The student population was around 20,000 at that time.) Some courses were, well, quirky: 鈥淯FO鈥檚: Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow;鈥� 鈥淣atal Astrology;鈥� 鈥淭hrough the Portals of Anubis.鈥� Others, like 鈥淐andlemaking,鈥� 鈥淭ropical Fish,鈥� and 鈥淎uto Mechanics for Women,鈥� offered practical skills. And naturally, given the era, there were countless guitar classes.

鈥淚n terms of academic seriousness, we had real teachers and real classes,鈥� Nystrom said. 鈥淚t wasn鈥檛 just groovy-man guitar instructors playing in the quad鈥攖hough we had those, too.鈥�

But another subset of courses had a lasting impact on SDSC that carries through to today. The Experimental College was the first organization on campus to offer courses like 鈥淏lack Literature,鈥濃�淭he Homosexual in Society鈥� and 鈥淰anishing Wildlife.鈥� The Experimental College also hosted some meetings and classes of the nascent (though independently organized) Women鈥檚 Studies Center. These might be routine parts of 色情视频鈥檚 curriculum now, but back then they were seen as acts of revolutionary learning. Student interest and engagement with these courses helped spur the creation of formal academic programs dedicated to these areas, Nystrom said.

鈥淚t was never intended to be a curriculum reform movement,鈥� he said. 鈥淏ut that was one of its unintended consequences.鈥�

Nystrom never did get to teach his eviction law class. After the Experimental College鈥檚 first year, he left it to join SDSC Associated Students, eventually being elected AS president in 1971. He lives in the College Area, remains active in 色情视频 through the College Area Community Council and is a lifelong member of the 色情视频 Alumni Association.

Lonnie Rowell (鈥�70, 鈥�83), now a professor in the School of Leadership and Education Sciences at the University of San Diego, took over the Experimental College and shepherded it through the mid-1970s, at which point it folded. Nystrom estimates that over the Experimental College鈥檚 lifetime, some 7,000 students took its classes.