George Washington University - Cherry Tree Yearbook (Washington, DC)

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Editordn-Chief Alvin McCreary Brown B us iness M an ager Duncan Campbell Smith Assistant Editors Myrtle Virginia King Earl Munro Jeffrey Editor of Organizations Ralph Hospital Sorority Editor Gertrude Veronica Browne Editor of Knocks Donald Langley Dutton Art Editor William T. Conboye Art Editor Francis Hue K. Reynolds Athletic Editor Howard Wilkinson Hodgkins Hatchet Editor Harold Keats 15

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CHERRY TREE BOARD

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G. W. U. The 19 13 Cherry Tree G. W. U. THE UNIVERSITY EORGE WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY has an historic past which would a be the pride of any institution, and its study is the privilege and the duty of every student An urban university rarely has the conditions favorable to the growth of academic traditions These generally cluster around some particular building or spot on the campus, and are commemorated by observances for which the privacy of the campus gives free opportunity for development. The college located in the city, and especially in the heart of the city, must be prepared to surrender much of its custom and tradition, from the very necessities of its situation. I he freedom of a campus in the business section of a city is out of the question. The concrete expressions of college spirit and undergraduate animation are apt to fall afoul of the Metropolitan Police. So George Washington has from its situation lost much of its student life, and much of l he tradition and custom that serves to commemorate the history of an institution. I he idea of a national university at the National Capita! dates from the beginning of our country’s history, George Washington in his will set aside a large sum of money for the founding of such an institution, and pictured his dream of the new city on the Potomac as a center of a broad, national culture. Thomas Jefferson, who drew up the firsl plan for the educational system of the District of Columbia, outlined three branches or stages of public education: the primary school, the academy, and a university. Con- gress doubted its authority under the Constitution to establish such a university, and took no action at the time. To this day the bequest has not been fulfilled. I he beginning of the present George Washington University can be traced back to the year 1819, when Luther Rice, a Baptist minister, impressed by the splendid oppor- tunities afforded to a college in the National Capital, set about energetically soliciting subscriptions from all classes of people all over the United States for the foundation of a college. By the aid of President Monroe a charter was secured from Congress in 1821 for the establishment of I he Columbian College in the District of Columbia ’ for the ‘’sole and exclusive purpose of educating youth in the English, learned, and foreign lan- guages, the liberal arts, sciences, and literature,” and with power to confer all degrees usually conferred by institutions of collegiate rank. The broad principles on which our University was founded are sufficiently indicated by a provision in our original charter to the effect that ' persons of all religious denominations shall he capable of being elected trustees, nor shall any person, either as president, professor, tutor, or pupil, be refused admittance into said college or denied any of the privileges, immunities, or advantages thereof, for or on account of his sentiments in matters of religion. 16