Palm Beach Community College - Galleon Yearbook (Lake Worth, FL)

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BOARD OF PUBLIC INSTRUCTION: left to right are Judge C. D. Blackwell, attorney for the board; Jack Horner, member; Irene Bacon, secretary to the Superintendent; George W. Slaton outgoing chairman Howell L. Watkins, Superintendent; Luella Bowman, aud- itor; Henry O. Earwood, chairman; Elizabeth Hand, mem- ber; Ralph Kettler, member; Thurmond Knight, member. This air of permanency faded with the out- break of the Korean conflict. War meant reacti- vation of the field and once again the college was without a home of its own. Students and alumni were aided by local newspapers in their plea for another location but none were large enough to facilitate the needs. Then the Town of Lake Park offered its town hall as a temporary haven and in August 1951 thousands of library books, furni- ture and equipment were moved in. Limited space in the town hall meant cutting the enrollment to 200 or less, reducing the faculty and staff to half but, as always, the faculty took it in stride and upheld the scholastic standards and the college remained accredited. During the next four years the morale around the little orphan college , as it was beginning to be nicknamed by the newspapers, was booste d by the friendly spirit that pervaded its halls and the knowledge that local civic organizations, office holders, alumni, and others were still working to keep it intact. James A. Ball, Jr. ADVISORY BOARD Richard D. Hill, Sr. Mrs. Robert S. Ersldne John J. Cater, Sr. Frank Atkinson

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A DREAM COME TRUE . . Palm Beach Junior College finds a permanent home Palm Beach Junior College, after 23 years and three temporary locations, is like the little orphan who had his dream of a permanent home come true. The dream began in the post-boom, mid-de- pression days of the early 1930 ' s when Palm Beach High School enrollment was swelled by a large group of graduates who, unable to finance a college education or to find jobs, returned to PBHS for post-graduate study. Mr. Howell L. Watkins, then Supervising Principal, and County Superintendent Joe. A. Youngblood conceived the idea of a junior college for the Palm Beaches— an institution that would give the student with scholastic ability and limited funds an opportunity for higher educa- tion. Support of civic and business groups was enlisted and an Advisory Committee was formed with representatives from various civic organiza- tions. Mr. Watkins and University of Florida offi- cials developed a basic two-year curriculum to meet students ' needs; a group of teachers with masters degrees and proven ability was asked to teach one or two extra classes without additional salary. Mr. Watkins was named Dean of the col- lege and in October 1933 the f irst class was ac- cepted. The dream had become a reality. In June 1936 the first class of three was grad- uated and in September of that year Dr. John I. Leonard succeeded Mr. Youngblood as County Superintendent and President of the college. TTie climax to Mr. Watkins ' 15 years as dean came in 1942 when PBJC became fully accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Secondary Schools. World War II slowed the tempo of rapidly growing PBJC but the sudden upsurge in enroll- ment at war ' s end, JC began bursting at the seams. 1947-48 was a momentous year for the col- lege. In December 1947, PBJC became the first public junior college in Florida approved by the State Board of Education for participation in the Foundation Program. Earlier in the fall the Board of Public Instruction had acquired a 21 acre sec- tion of Morrison Field from the U.S. Government following deactivation of the field. PBJC moved to its second location in February 1948. In July Dr. Leonard relinquished the Superintendency and became full time president with a home on campus. The large hospital section was turned into administrative and classroom units, the officers ' club became the student union, the officers ' quarters were transformed into dormitories, and the swimming pool, tennis and basketball courts, gymnasium, and theater all combined to give PBJC an air of happy permanency. HOWELL L. WATKINS JOE A. YOUNGBLOOD

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ALUMNI ASSOCIATION: Shirley Mumm Wolfe, Joan Do- brow Hill, Glennie Buntyn Massey, Martha Ann Harper Duncan, Delores Stone, Lucille Meebold Bates, Jean Ermeti, Clyde F- Windham, Richard Hill, Jr., J. J. Cater, Jr., Wayne Self, Ed Eissey, John Johnston, Winston O. Dodge. Not pictured: Mary Louise Archibald, George Jones. EMMETT S. ROBERTS DICKINSON HUSSELL O. MORROW Led by Senator Russell O. Morrow, long a stanch supporter of PBJC, the Palm Beach County delegation to the State Legislature, which in- Representatives Fred O. Bud Dickinson and Emmett Roberts, joined educators irom other junior college localities to sponsor a bill appro- 1 riating funds for development of the four public junior colleges in Florida. On the morning of May 4, 1955, the headline that blazed across the Palm Beach Post read SOLONS APPROVE $1,047,000 FOR JUNIOR COLLEGE. A million dollars! Could the dream be coming true? C COUNTY COMMISSION: Paul Rardin, Roy Michaels, Ken Foster, Lake Lytal, Ben Sunday. 8