Armour Institute of Technology - Cycle Yearbook (Chicago, IL)

Page 17 text:

THE INSTITUTE W$t 3nStitutc In responding to a request from the Board of Editors of “The Cycle” to write a few words regarding the Institute, it has seemed to me unnecessary to dwell upon the details concerning its history. Many articles have been written reciting the incidents con- nected with its foundation and development, and one has only to turn to the former “Annuals” of the Junior Class and various magazine articles to obtain any his- torical information desired. However interesting all these facts may be, and suffice it to say that they arc unusually so, the question of moment to those of us who have been in the service for many years is—What has been accomplished and what are we accomplishing today? Twenty-one years have passed since President Gunsaulus first addressed the students in Assembly and told them of the aim, purpose, and high ideals of the Institute, the responsi- bilities of which had so recently been placed in his hands by Mr. Philip D. Armour. Wonderful changes have come; the hearts of those in authority and the members of the faculty are no warmer, the outlook for service is no more enthusiastic now than then, but the training is more thorough, the equipment is more complete, the curriculum is more firmly established, and we know what we can accomplish best. What a change in general conditions—from the atmosphere incident to the attempt to teach both sexes, which, however, was distinctly the proper policy to pursue at that time, to that of the high grade college of engineering as the Armour Institute of Technology stands today! Many are the boys and girls who owe a successful career to the days spent in our preparatory and associated departments, but we believe that we are reaching as many students today and are preparing them better for the work of life in our college of engineering and evening classes than it was possible to do in the inexperienced days of long ago. There are several contributing reasons which may be used to explain why the Institute has attained a position among the first-rank colleges of the country. The main one is quality, for which the Institute has always stood and without which as its fundamental principle no enterprise, be it educational or otherwise, can hope to achieve success. Quality, of course, indicates thoroughness, a cardinal principle of the late Mr. Philip D. Armour, whose precept and example has always acted as an inspiration to those who were chosen to develop the plans of the institution which was his greatest pride. Cooperation is another characteristic which has had its share in bringing the work of the different departments of the Institute to their present high standard of efficiency. In a college of engineering, it is necessary that students enrolled in one department should receive instruction in certain studies in other departments, and it is this spirit of enthusiastic cooperation among instructors and students that assists greatly in obtaining the good results for which the Institute has attained distinction. 9