Tag Archives: Degrees

Coeducation becomes part of the undergraduate program (p. 339)

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Among the administrative changes of the Barnett period was the creation of a new office. A Provost was appointed to be in charge of university affairs in the absence of the President. The Vice President for Development was made Vice President for Development, Alumni Affairs, and Public Relations. The office of Vice President for Business and Finance was set up as a concurrent appointment to be held by the Treasurer. The staff of the Dean of Students was enlarged by adding an Assistant Dean of Students for Fraternities, to provide professional leadership in developing policies and standards for fraternity chapter operations.

Colgate’s enrollment, slightly less than 1,500 in 1962, had risen to just over 2,000 in 1968. Tuition, which had been $1,375 in 1962, by 1968 had increased to $2,285. So far as possible students whose financial resources were inadequate to meet costs were assisted by scholarships, work opportunities, and loan funds.

Coeducation became a part of the undergraduate program in 1968. Women were first permitted to study on the graduate level in summer session in 1959 and at the special summer session commencement in 1961 they received their first earned degrees (M.A.). They were admitted to the teaching intern program in 1963 and attended classes during the regular academic year. Accepting the recommendations of a trustee-faculty-administration-alumni committee, the Trustees in 1967 endorsed the principle of coeducation and directed that feasibility studies be made of methods by which it might be adopted. A few months later, however, they decided that a pilot program should be initiated in September, 1968, and three women were admitted as undergraduates. Plans were made for Skidmore College students (approximately 50) to join in the 1969 January Plan on the Colgate campus and for the same number of Colgate students to participate in Skidmore’s January Plan. For the spring term of 1969, Colgate and Vassar College expected to initiate an exchange of students, probably 20-30, on a one-to-one basis. Vassar had already completed similar arrangements with Williams and Trinity Colleges.

Noteworthy features of undergraduate life included the elimination of compulsory chapel. Worship services, normally led by students, were held Wednesday morning with voluntary attendance. In October, 1964, and in March, 1968, students organized and conducted the Creative Arts Festival and the Fortnight of the Arts which afforded

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Kenneth W. Morgan appointed first university Chaplain (p. 326)

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A. Choquette, Chairman of the Romance Languages Department, it was a supervised workshop equipped with a variety of modern audio-visual aids.

With the adoption of the post-war program, preceptorial counseling, which faculty members had formerly provided for freshmen and sophomores under the Colgate Plan, was entrusted to graduate students who served as counselors to freshmen only. Administered by a Director of Preceptorial Studies, the program involved the assignment of about twenty freshmen to a Graduate Preceptor. Besides his counseling duties, the preceptor spent half his time in studies for the master’s degree. By action of the faculty in 1962, the Preceptorial Program was terminated in favor of using instructors of small sections of a new course in rhetoric and literature and undergraduate and graduate resident advisors. Counseling services were strengthened in 1959 with the appointment of a University Counselor, a trained clinical psychologist to assist in exploring and solving personal problems, and by setting up of a well-equipped Placement Center in the Spear House to offer guidance to seniors in the choice of jobs or graduate schools.

The appointment of Kenneth W. Morgan as the first University Chaplain in 1946 gave new leadership and effective organization to the religious life of the student body. Under his direction the University Church provided regular Sunday worship in the Protestant tradition and a study and service program. Guided by the Chaplain, the Colgate Religious Association facilitated the work of all religious groups on the campus. The chaplains, who were also on the Philosophy and Religion Department staff, had a part in the University counseling services by advising students with religious problems.

Beginning in 1946 Colgate offered a five-year program in teacher education leading to a Master of Arts degree. It grew out of faculty discussions prior to the war and in conformity to the State Education Department certification requirement of a fifth year of graduate study in addition to the usual four years for a bachelor’s degree. A program for those who wished to teach physical education and a selected subject-matter field was instituted in 1947.

The seven “schools” into which the curriculum had been organized in the 1930’s were replaced by five Divisions-Humanities, Natural Sciences and Mathematics, Physical Education and Athletics, Social

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p. 304 – The Cutten Period, 1922-1942

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Sponsored by the chapter, the Phi Society elected annually those sophomores whose first year’s work merited recognition for excellence. Nine members of the Class of 1931 became its initial members in December 1928.

Since the A.B., B.S., and B.Th. degrees were nearly equivalent the faculty in 1926 decided upon one degree, the A.B., with uniform requirements; the B.D. was retained for theological students who had taken two extra years. With the increasing emphasis on the undergraduate work the faculty came to recognize that the college was not prepared to maintain programs for the master’s degrees in arts and science, which had never attracted many students, and in 1926 gradually began to eliminate them; ten years later they had disappeared.

Enrollment in the College in the Cutten period showed a steady gain, save a slight decrease in the Depression years 1932-35, with the total rising from 664 in 1922 to a high of 1,092 in 1939 and declining to 1007 in 1942. Seminary enrollment stayed at about 60 until the removal to Rochester in 1928. It was in the fall of 1930, however, that the enrollment reached the 1,000 mark. Though the totals after 1930 frequently went beyond the 1,000 limit set by the Trustees in 1924 the excess was slight and attrition through the academic year was sufficient to prevent serious overcrowding of facilities.

As was to be expected, student life reflected the spirit and behavior on eastern campuses in the carefree “roaring twenties” and Depression ’30’s. Colgate was noted for its athletic enthusiasm which often overshadowed its genuine non-athletic accomplishment. Mobility became increasingly easier with the greater number of student automobiles. In 1923 it became necessary to restrict owning and operating motor vehicles to juniors and seniors and to require that vehicles be registered at the Registrar’s Office. By 1928 parking had become so much of a problem that the Trustees adopted a set of rules to deal with it. Student dress of the 20’s featured coonskin coats for the more affluent, and sheepskin-lined khaki coats with high collars for their fellows. Red rubber overshoes and maroon sweaters were worn in winter, and distinctive class blazers in the fall and spring. The Class of 1926 seems to have been the first to adopt the blazer which remained in vogue until 1931. Perhaps white bucks were the hallmark of the less flamboyant ’30’s.

Student discipline, long the province of the Senior Governing Board  which concerned itself about such matters as enforcing the wearing of

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p. 273 – The Bryan Period, 1908-1922

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dent to enable it to give greater attention to teacher training courses.

The Seminary failed to keep pace with the College in growth or performance. A major reason seems to have been the practice of admitting many poorly prepared students, several of whom enrolled in the abbreviated English course as an easy academic short cut to the ministry. In 1918 provision was made for such students by establishing a four-year course for non-college graduates to be taught by both Seminary and College faculties which would lead to the Bachelor of Theology degree. Further accommodation came in 1919 when the requirements for the Bachelor of Divinity degree, hitherto totaling seven years of college and theological work, were reduced to six and non-college men were admitted to the program.

Changes in the Seminary included the resignation of Dr. Sylvester Burnham as Dean in 1910 and the appointment of William H. Allison, A.B., Harvard, ’93, and a Chicago Ph.D., as his successor and Professor of Ecclesiastical History. Dr. Allison was followed in 1915 by John F. Vichert, a former student at MacMaster University, Hamilton, Ontario, and Chicago, who taught Theology. Dr. Hinton S. Lloyd, for thirty-eight years Corresponding Secretary of the Baptist Education Society and, in effect, its chief officer, resigned in 1915 to be succeeded by Dean Vichert. Frank A. Starratt, A.B., Acadia, ’92, was Professor of Theology from 1909 to 1919 and Dr. William M. Lawrence, ’70, former President of the University Board of Trustees, in 1912 became Lecturer in Christian Ethics.

Though the Library did not play as vital a part in the educational process as later, this resource of the University nearly doubled its holdings in the Bryan period, growing from about 50,000 volumes to more than 90,000. Dr. David F. Estes, who had retired from the Seminary in 1920 as Professor of New Testament, retired as Librarian the next year. His successor was Charles W. Spencer, the former Professor of History who had resigned in 1905 and now returned after teaching at Princeton and the University of Nevada and receiving his  Ph.D. from Columbia. He was the first full-time University Librarian.  Perhaps best known on the staff were Miss Alice A. Guller, Circulation  Librarian, who came in 1914 and Miss Lida C. Vasbinder, Reference  Librarian, who came a year later; both will be remembered for their  generous assistance to generations of students and faculty.

` After several years of decline Colgate Academy closed its doors in

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p. 251 – The Merrill Presidency, 1899-1908

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Education Society Trustees, who were especially concerned over the poor furnace system of Eaton Hall, made it possible. In 1907 a stone power house with a five-boiler capacity was constructed to the south of Whitnall Field; two boilers installed; and a pipe-line to Eaton Hall laid. As occasion arose the main could be extended to the other buildings on the campus.

The size of the faculty grew from 29 in 1899 to 38 in 1908, the biggest change being in the College where the number increased from 16 to 21; in the Academy it rose from 6 to 10 while the figure remained at 7 in the Seminary. By 1908 the average salary in the College and Academy had reached slightly more than $1,700 and in the Seminary approximately $2,000, levels which the President felt were much too low.

During the Merrill period the chief curricular change was a revision of the Sophomore program in 1903 so that, except for a public speaking course, it consisted of electives chosen from three well-defined areas. Also, the Ph.B. was abolished and the philosophical and classical courses were amalgamated into a new arts course leading to the A.B. degree. The faculty took this action by nearly unanimous vote with the President and Professor Andrews alone opposing the move because it involved dropping Greek as a requirement for entering the arts course. Nevertheless, Dr. Merrill reluctantly accepted the change as in line with current practices of American colleges. Colgate now granted two degrees-A.B. and B.S.

The rapidly growing interest in science, as rising enrollments in science courses and the construction of Lathrop Hall and the Chemistry Building addition indicated, gave pause to Dean Crawshaw in 1906. He acknowledged, in his report to the President, that the facilities had been sorely needed but he called for equal emphasis and opportunity for the humanities as essential for liberal education which was the University’s primary purpose. There was no more staunch supporter of the Dean’s position than the President himself who had repeatedly stressed the importance of the humanities both in terms of course offerings and non-classroom activities, such as concerts and lectures, and who enthusiastically encouraged the expansion of the University’s art collection of plaster busts. and reproductions of classical sculpture housed in the Library.

Aside from the science courses, perhaps those in public speaking

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p. 230 – Colgate in the 1890’s

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Following Professor Thurber’s resignation in 1895, Professor Sisson was made Acting Principal for one year and Professor Frank L. Shepardson succeeded to the vacancy in 1896. A graduate of Brown, he came to Colgate with a fine record as a teacher and as principal of Worcester Academy in Massachusetts. He was to discharge his duties in the Academy with distinction and on its closing in 1912 became Treasurer of the University and Professor of Greek.

Theological instruction in the 1890’s was strengthened and made flexible by the introduction of electives in 1892 and by lengthening all courses of study from two to three years. In 1894, as a new departure, a Bachelor of Divinity degree was authorized for students graduated with an A.B. who had taken the full three-year course, including courses in Hebrew and the Semitic languages and written a thesis.

Easily the most outstanding Seminary professor was William Newton Clarke who had been induced in 1890 to leave the pastorate of the village Baptist church to fill the vacant chair in theology of the late Dr. Dodge. No appointment could have been more momentous. He had graduated from Madison in 1861, served the University for many years as Trustee and Secretary of the Board, been minister to churches in New England and Montreal, and taught in the Toronto Baptist College. For some time he had struggled with theological problems in a period when new interpretations and analyses gave rise to much controversy. His first classroom lectures were the distillation of his advanced thinking and evoked keen interest and active discussion. Though he provoked harsh criticism for what many considered his unorthodox ideas, he maintained that he “endeavored reverently and honestly to deal with the Christian truth.” His students were not required to agree with their teacher but rather “encouraged to think for themselves and form their own conclusions.” These lectures saw publication in 1894 as Outline of Christian Theology, which has gone through 21 editions and represents a milestone in the development of progressive theology in the United States.

Among Dr. Clarke’s colleagues was David F. Estes, a graduate of the University of Vermont, who had studied at the Newton Theological Institution and at Gottingen, had taught in the Atlanta Baptist College, and been pastor in four New England churches. He took over Dr. Harvey’s courses in New Testament in 1891 and in 1892 followed Professor Thomas as University Librarian. Arthur Jones was added in

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p. 225 – Colgate in the 1890’s

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mained the fundamental objective but a broader approach can be detected in James C. Colgate’s remarks at the dedication of the Library in 1891. He said:

It always seems to me to be a lack of faith rather than indication of reverence when people are afraid to have their beliefs examined in the broad light of day. A university should be a source of light. While we make no boast yet we believe that the principles for which this university stands . . . need never fear the white light of keenest criticism.

Five years later he explained to students that the chief aim of a college course was “culture” which he defined as a “passion for knowledge”combined with the ability to use knowledge intelligently. The educated man should be able “to reason rightly, to judge correctly, to perceive the beautiful and recognize the true.” In making his point, however, he did not overlook morality as the source for proper conduct and for sound religion. The college provided conditions congenial for the growth of culture, he asserted, but the responsibility for its attainment rested with the individual student. His advice to those unable to benefit from a college experience was, “Go to work, or, if you must go to college, go anywhere but here.”

Mr. Colgate’s statements suggest to some degree the extensive re-examination and revision which the faculty, spurred on by the younger members such as Terry and Brigham, were ‘giving to the entire educational structure. Fewer freshmen were admitted with conditional credits for uncompleted work and admission requirements in the ancient languages were lowered. The grading system and absence regulations were revised. The major changes, however, were to be found in the reduction of the amount of Greek and Latin required and the expansion of elective choices. From 1890 to 1893 there were five courses of study; that for the Bachelor of Arts degree followed the traditional pattern in stressing Greek and Latin; the two courses for the Bachelor of Philosophy gave a choice of Greek or Latin and required French and German; of the two for the Bachelor of Science one required Latin and German and one only German. In 1893 the five courses of study were consolidated into three-A.B., Ph.B., and B.S. with the requirements substantially unchanged except that the candidates for the last took French and German.

After 1896 all the work of the senior year was elective. The student was encouraged, however, to select courses which had some relation-

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Madison University began granting Master of Arts degrees (p. 171)

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unendurably long if the class were large, since each graduate delivered an oration and there might also be inaugural addresses by new professors as well. In the late ’50’s the young ladies from the Female Seminary developed the custom of throwing bouquets from the gallery of the church to the College seniors as each concluded his oration. Some of the floral tributes landed on the heads of the honorable and reverend guests who sat on the platform. The girls’ poor aim had an element of danger as well as humor since bouquets were sometimes weighted with stones.

In 1852, the University began granting Master of Arts degrees, in course, to alumni who engaged in literary pursuits at least three years after graduation. Students completing the Seminary course also received the A.M. provided they already had an A.B. For those who took the shorter course consisting of selected subjects from all three departments of the University, the Bachelor of Philosophy degree was instituted in 1856. The diploma fee was five dollars which presumably included the cost of the slim tin tube in which the parchment was rolled.

Commencement visitors in 1851 rejoiced to find the University in a prospering state after the Removal question had been settled. Those who came in 1852 mourned the loss of Daniel Hascall who had died only recently. To enliven the program in 1854, the seniors hired a brass band to lead the commencement procession and provide music during the exercises. The faculty opposed this innovation and its reappearance was delayed until 1866.

Class customs at commencement were not inaugurated until 1865 when the seniors staged a Class Day similar to those observed at other colleges. Their president conducted the outdoor exercises which consisted of the traditional oration, history, poem, prophecy, and farewells from representatives of the three lower classes, followed by the planting of the class tree, each senior throwing a shovelful of earth on the roots. In 1866 the seniors introduced a new feature on the evening of Class Day-“a comic funeral of the pony, on which the class had ridden through the classics.”

The Alumni Society meetings during commencement week were devoted chiefly to reminiscences of undergraduate days and pledges of loyalty to the University. The speeches, usually impromptu, were often witty and amusing but sometimes they got prosy and dull. Class

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p. 102 – Administrative problems and incorporation, 1833-1846

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achieved a fair degree of maturity, a status which must have cheered
the Trustees while at the same time it presented new problems. The Board hoped for State aid since the opening of the collegiate depart­ment to non-ministerial students in 1839 made that division the equivalent of a regular college. Students who entered the collegiate course, meanwhile, began to ask for baccalaureate degrees. Efforts to get State patronage and permission to grant degrees were the back- ground of the movement for incorporation which eventually attained success with the granting of the Madison University Charter in 1846.

The first suggestion that State money might be available came in 1839 from Charles Walker of Utica, a trustee and a member of the State Assembly. He and Friend Humphrey of Albany, likewise a trustee and a member of the Senate, were authorized to petition the legislature in January, 1840, for an annual appropriation of $5,000. Their exertions were unavailing, however, since the legislature refused to grant funds to an unincorporated institution.

To obviate this objection, the Executive Committee, faculty, several Board members, and citizens of Hamilton and vicinity immediately took steps to get the collegiate department incorporated as Hamilton University. The Assembly unanimously approved their petition in April, 1840, but the next month it was rejected by a 16 to 9 vote in the Senate. The reason was that the proposed university did not meet conditions which the Regents of the University of the State of New York imposed on all institutions asking for charters, namely, that they possess specified assets of not less than $70,000. Though the resources of the Institution were estimated at more than this sum, they were not invested and secured as the Regents required.

Dr. Kendrick, who was much more interested in training Baptist ministers than in seeing the collegiate department expand, opposed the charter movement as strongly as he had the admission of non-ministerial students. He was apprehensive lest the collegiate department become independent of the other divisions with the result that the local advantages for theological education might be impaired. He also feared that incorporation would make the Institution less dependent on the churches, whose agent it had always been, and, consequently, less responsive to their needs. Furthermore, he questioned whether, if a charter were obtained, Hamilton would be the best location for the collegiate department, thus anticipating one of the important issues of

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