First 50 years of the College of Saint Benedict (CSB). Hall&qOn the third floor, and the fourth, are located the private rooms of the students. Those on third floor open out into a beautiful rotunda; those on the fourth, into a balcony above the rotunda made pleasant and bright through the use of a very large and beautiful skylight. The rotunda is furnished with davenports, comfortable chairs, library tables and a piano. (The next bulletin included a radio and an orthophonic victrola.) The rotunda is the recreation room of the college students" (College Bulletin, 1926).
Though lacking in privacy, the dormitories of 15 or more students per dorm were places for community-bonding and the cultivation of common courtesies. Sister-prefects lived in the dormitories with the students to foster an atmosphere of quiet and respect for others. Moral training was not formally taught in the classroom; it was hoped that it would be absorbed by the atmosphere and tone of the academy as set by teachers, prefects, and older students. There were strict rules about privacy; no student was to enter another student's "cell" (curtained area around each bed and stand) or desk or to borrow or lend clothing. Polite and gentle manners were just as important as intellectual pursuits (Saint Benedict's Monastery Archives, McDonald, pages 104-105).
First 50 years of the College of Saint Benedict (CSB). "All private rooms (in Teresa Hall) are furnished in mahogany and have hot and cold water. If desired, a number of students may have a room with private bath" (College Bulletin, 1926).