Illinois State Normal University - Index Yearbook (Normal, IL)

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seek his monument, look around you ' FeU HaU dedicated in 1918, bears little resemblance to the present-day dormitory. A front porch a south wing and a fourth floor have been annexed to the mitial structure m order to accommodate the 250 women residents. Naval personnel utrhzed the residence hall ' s facilities during World War II. the idea that a four-year curriculum should not be required of all students; rather, that students should be trained to meet only the needs of a specific Community. He succeeded in converting the normal school into the present-day teachers college, com- prised of several divisions for the preparation of both elementary and secondary teachers. The opening of the first summer school took place in 1901 as an aid to in-service teachers. A six weeks ' summer term, with 544 persons in attendance, launched the first session. The spring of 1911 gave birth to the Department of Rural Education, with a broad two-year curriculum program. ISNU ' s original charter contained a clause requiring agricul- tural education. The contract went unheeded until 1911, when steps were taken to develop the farm curriculum. The 100-acre area set aside for the model farm gave rise to ten buildings and several classes o f livestock in 1912. Although the university was given the right to grant Bachelor in Education degrees in 1907, students did not take full ad- vantage of the four-year curriculum until the early 20s. Children in the Illinois Soldiers ' Orphan Home, since renamed IlHnois Soldiers ' and Sailors ' Children ' s School, became part of the ISNU training program in 1916. Schoolrooms were then lo- cated in an outmoded frame building at the outskirts of Normal. Dean Herman Henry Scliroeder was ISNU ' s second acting president. The pro- fessor of education presided in 1930 and 1933, while Board members were con- sidering permanent administrators.

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Thirty years of presidential service exemplify the career of David Felmley. He assumed the top administrative post in 1900. An advocator of simplified spelling, the mustached New Englander released I.S ' U correspondence .sport- ing phonetic spelling. David Felmley — If you The turn of tlie century gave rise to the longest ad- ministration of any one ISNU president — the 30 year term of David Felmley. The New Jersey born educator was named to the top post only after convincing the Teachers College Board that he would continue in the presidential capacity regardless of offers from other col- leges. This action was, of necessity, spurred by the not- yet-forgotten one-year service of Arnold Tompkins. President Felmley first joined the Normal school staff in 1890, succeeding John Cook as head of the matlie- matics department. As a graduate of Michigan Univer- sity, he had received the highest marks ever accorded one student up to that period. Administrative work at Carrollton, Illinois, preceded the ISNU appointment. Tlie University of Illinois education department facili- ties threatened the advancement of the normal college during the Felmley era. Equipped with top-notch salar- ies, lighter teacher-class loads, and more resourceful ad- ministrative techniques, the state university was able to lure more would-be-teachers to its campus and thus to reduce teacher college enrollments. It was during a clash between the two universities that President Felmley championed a campaign to maintain the status of state teachers colleges in Illinois. President Felmley s philosopln- of education included fM ' ! ' ' ■. K- ' ' r - ■ Sprim. dnced rated klll in 1 m the wo, Inrk, ,. .HI. athlct iMssmu Uvlm, c program. ul ,lnnls 1,11 ImnL, III, ill i l.(. h, , I li, -,l I K. , p ,l ' plO- iiucs. .Uchciy, sotthall, xollcxhall. aii.l Icilk iLnicliig uric mcoipu- 26

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W ' ann weather lured many an art stiuknt ciiiiipped with easel ami brush out of doors to reproduce the campus green on canvas. Adoption of an Illinois Civil Administrative Code in 1917 brought ISNU and the four other state teachers colleges under the jurisdiction of a single board. Nor- mal school presidents approxed the idea of unity rule for the five colleges; however, they disliked the lack of co-operation, red-tape management, and political interference practiced by Board members. This or- ganization has evolved into the present-day Teachers College Board. The initial step toward an established Universit - health service was taken in 1923. Wages were set aside for the first school nurse, with offices to be lo- cated in Cook Hall. Five major buildings were constructed during the course of the Felmley reign. In 1912, the Illinois State Legislature appropriated funds for the Metcalf Train- ing School, named for the school ' s first principal. Fell Hall, the first on-campus dormitory, was opened to women students in 1918. The red-brick building ' s south wing was not completed until mid-century be- cause World War I expenditures left inadequate funds. Honor residents became an integral factor in dormitory life. In order that the art, home economics, and industrial Victory gardens dotted the American co uitrysidc during World War I. Portions of the Unixersity farm were given over to the task. 28