Hard Times For The Harvard Of The Masses

Nostalgia is deceptively easy in Harlem. Developers have kept their distance, leaving the old brownstones to grow old gracefully, or to rot. Walking uphill on 145th Street from St. Nicholas Avenue to Convent Avenue, I can see that little has changed since I graduated from City College 19 years ago. What's this? A new hero shop near the IND subway station? I read the sign: All Sandwiches $2.75. 1975 prices. I glance at my reflection in the window. What year is this? How old am I?

For an alumnus, returning to City College can be an emotionally wrenching experience. That was particularly so in my case, because my alma mater was under attack. When I was at City, some people still referred to it as the Harvard of the Proletariat. But nowadays, critics maintain that the college has been so ravaged by declining standards that it is little more than a glorified high school. I wanted to get a first-hand look.