Report of the Camaraderie House for Female Students
G ö t t i n g e n
Winter Semester 1935/36.
We have had a Camaraderie House for female students in Göttingen since the summer semester of 1934. With a great deal of effort, it has just recently become "our house."
A Camaraderie House for female students is a highly controversial notion. It has come into being with full awareness of that. We simply believe that a transpersonal comradeship is possible among girls as well, we have demonstrated it in the past semesters, and we think that work can be done on certain joint tasks only in such a group.
At the present time, we need political people at the university, and here being "political"quite simply means being committed, being responsible in all our actions to an ideology: National Socialism. For us, it means having a vital stake in the things that are around us.
What is to be brought into being as a "new institution of higher education" finds its justification and meaning solely in terms of its purpose: to be a seat of education. People are to be educated as complete human beings, shaped, formed, all in the same manner, regardless of the department or faculty in question, in the same sense of responsibility.
[Bottom of page] Copy from the Federal Archives
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[Photo] Room of the head of the Camaraderie House
[Photo] Visitors' room [illegible]
[Photo] Verandah
[Bottom of page] Copy from the Federal Archives
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As a result of the focus on the "new institution of higher education," the Comradeship Houses gain meaning and purpose, the houses for male students as well as those for female students. The point is not to have a pleasant "semester of comradeship" by halfway giving up on one's studies. Rather, the point is to study in such a way that one is educated and shaped by the course of studies itself.
The purpose of our House as well is to truly realize, in a group, the comradeship that is a requirement imposed on all of us, based on the task at hand.
There are 15 to 20 of us girls living in the House, and we quite deliberately do all the jobs that come up, both indoors and in the garden, by ourselves. Admittedly, for the actual running of the kitchen we have a "household advisor," a girl; however, she is fully part of our comradeship.
In our House, there are bedrooms for 4, 3, and 2 girls, as well as a few single rooms. For work, we have two study rooms and cozier areas, in addition to a common dining hall and room for showering, bathing, and washing. In the summer we also have the garden with deckchairs, a table, and other chairs, and two verandahs available to us. A library with good books provides for entertainment.
In our House, we want to have cheerful, happy, knowledgeable young people. – Thus our day begins at 6:30 a.m. (in winter) with half an hour of early-morning exercise (running, gymnastics, games). At 7:30, the flag is raised, with a maxim or saying and a song, and then we all have breakfast together. Then each girl goes about her own work, only the "domestic service team" still has to do its household chores. (Each girl has to perform one hour of "domestic service" twice a week.) At midday, at 1:15, we all meet again in the House to have the midday meal together, followed by a newspaper report. The evening meal is served at 7:15 p.m., and is followed by taking down the flag. (At midday and in the evening, two girls help wash the dishes.)
Our training (as an element of the Association of National Socialist Female Students) is always guided by a topic and takes place once a week. We have often invited leading figures to the training session, people who can report to us on economic matters and the like.
The House evenings (once a week) are held for the purpose of preparing us for our deployment in agricultural service [Landdienst] and dealing with issues such as "The Institute of Higher Education and Us."
Copy from the Federal Archives
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[Photo] A study room
[Photo] Large bedroom
[Photo] A single room