Confessions of a Co-Ed 1931

Patricia Harper tells the story of her four years at the co-educational Stafford College, a time defined by friendships, rivalries, and the quiet choices that shape a young woman’s future. She draws the attention of two men, Dan Carter and Hal Evans, and for a time she falls in love with Dan. Yet trouble arises when she is accused by her fellow student, Peggy Wilson, of stealing him away. The accusation forces Pat to distance herself from Dan, while Peggy, desperate to keep Dan’s affection for herself, engineers a ride in Hal’s car. On an out-of-bounds road the car strikes a policeman and plunges into a ditch, yet the lovers escape unseen. Peggy’s vanity case is found in the car, leading to Peggy’s expulsion from Stafford College and leaving the campus puzzled by the identities of the people involved.

During the Christmas holidays, Hal and Pat join Dan and other students on a mountain skiing expedition. Dan manages to separate Pat from the group and leads her to a forest ranger’s hut where they are alone and, away from prying eyes, they share a forbidden kiss and a moment of intimacy. Wracked with jealousy, Hal reveals to the Dean, Dean Winslow, that Dan was in his car with Peggy, and Dan is expelled as a result. He leaves without saying goodbye to Pat. When Peggy visits the College to collect her belongings, Pat confides that she is pregnant. Peggy urges her to marry Hal, but Pat refuses to deceive him and writes a letter of explanation which Peggy promises to deliver. Pat and Hal marry, yet it is not until three years later that Pat learns Peggy did not deliver the letter.

On that same day, Dan returns from South America, and Hal, without revealing his own marriage, extends an invitation to dinner. Dan confesses that he betrayed Pat but loves her and wishes to marry her. When Pat returns home and discovers that Hal now knows the truth about the child, a fierce quarrel erupts and she admits that she still loves Dan. Hal agrees to a divorce so that Pat and Dan can be together, allowing the child to have both of its rightful parents and for Pat to build a life with the man she truly loves.