Illinois Institute of Technology - Integral / Lewis Yearbook (Chicago, IL)

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Another important advantage, one offered by few schools of equal size and rank, is the personal advice and assistance of the director in laying out the courses of study, a point of marked superiority over the system in many insti- tutions. Finally, these advantages are brought within the reach of any ambi- tious young man or young woman. Aside from the scholarships awarded annually, the tuition at Lewis Institute is less than at almost any other school of equal rank. This is the sort of school, we believe, that Allen C. Lewis planned, a school eminently practical, of broad scope, and within the reach of all. NVhat Peter Cooper's work has done for thousands in New York Allen C. Lewis' work is doing here in Chicago. SECRET SOCIETIES IN SECONDARY SCHOOLS N the secondary schools of the-country there are two policies .fol- lowed with regard to fraternities. In some schools fraternities are discouraged and even forbidden, and in certain-cases there has been resort to litigation. The authorities of these institutions maintain that boys in secondary schools are too young for the affiliations of the fraternityg that the fraternity causes them to waste time, and is thus a detriment to study, and that it too often encourages snobbislmess or artificial distinctions based on wealth. V ' In other schools fraternities are tolerated, recognized, and even en- couraged, upon grounds that they cause the formation of pleasant associa- tions, that they are not detrimental to healthful student life, and that they encourage school spirit. The question of allowing the existence of fraternities in any secondary school has recently been revived, and is now being discussed. The policy of the Lewis Institute is established. Fraternities and sororities are recog- nized by the school to the extent that they are allowed to post their notices in the school lobbies, on the condition that a member of the faculty be chosen as an honorary member. who shall act as the adviser of the organization. 24

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He came to see clearly that to throw upon the world a boy or a girl incapable of doing well some one thing is to give that boy or girl the most unfavorable start possible in the only life they have to live, and it is believed that, when Mr. Lewis returned to Chicago, he had fully determined to set on foot a project that should lead directly to the establishment of a unique school. This school was to train boys and girls for lifework, and to train them so well that failure would be contingent upon lack of personal effort only. Mr. Lewis felt that such a school must needs have ample funds or it would fail. In accordance with this wise foresight he constrained himself to go slowly. His business was lucrative, and with wife, child and other near relatives gone, he gave himself up to it that he might thereby further his plans for a school, and when he died, in 1876, it was found that very nearly all of his fortune of about S6o0,0oo had been given to found a school, as previously outlined. Mr. Lewis had inserted clauses in his will which required that the money should rest as he had invested it until such time as it had reached a certain value. He felt that it would be useless to build and operate a school with less than, say, S8oo,ooo. In 1896 the trustees of the bequest prepared to carry out the plan of Mr. Lewis and found that the sum in hand amounted to nearly three times the amount he left at his death. After some difficulty regarding a site had been met, the southeast corner of Robey and Madison streets was choseng a serviceable building was erected and George Noble Carman was made director of the Lewis Institute. In fulfilling the mission planned for it by its founder, the Lewis Insti- tute has come to occupy 'a unique position among schools. It is essentially broad in its conception, being not an academy merely, nor a technical school, nor a college, but a closely combined union of the three. It receives boys and girls from the grammar school, and, after taking them through the preparatory course, offers either literary or scientific work through two years of college, or the engineering course to the degree of M. E. During the first two years of study, all engineering students are expected to take literary work with the technical. This affords them the opportunity to make a careful decision as to their course of study, and at the same time gives them a less one-sided training than would be possible in a strictly teclmical school. Besides this, the Lewis arrangement allows the literary student to take up some work not strictly literary, or the technical student some work not strictly technical, in departments far better organized than would be possible in an exclusively literary or technical school. This close relationship existing between the literary and engineering departments makes possible the association of all the students in the literary societies, musical and athletic organizations, and in the social life generally, a pleasant relationship which is kept up by the alumni association. 23

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- PUBLIC SPEAKING AT LEWIS INSTITUTE URING the year marked advance has been made in the 'mrt of public speaking at the Institute That 1S to say, provisions have I c 1 c c c been made which provide for much more public speaking than . - 1 . A . 0 Cs C C 5 ever before The Institute has long iequxred '1 certain amount of public speaking as part and parcel of the regular English work. One day a week is taken for this work, the recitation period being devoted entirely to speakingg each student is expected to deliver a speech in the sense that he must make a plea, and then endeavor to defend it, and to win his audience over to his side. Each individualis work is carefully criticised by the in- structor in charge, such criticism being written out, so that the student may have it for private reference. This plan of work brought about such excellent results that the Institute decided to give more prominence to public speaking. In accordance with this policy, it was announced that to the best three speakers in the Allen C. Lewis Society debates during a certain period of time three prizes should be awarded, to wit: the first prize, one yearls tuition at the Institute, the second prize, two quarters' tuition, and the third prize, one quarter's tuition. This year these prizes were won by Messrs. Faust, Moulton and Servis, in the order given in the awards notice. It is understood that the same prizes will be offered annually by the Institute hereafter. In addition to these features, and probably in some way as a result of them, public speaking has advanced in the debating societies of the Institute. The Collegiate Girls' Club has devoted considerable time to debates. The Current Topics Club has done much excellent work in its weekly meetings. Mr. George Faust, winner of the first prize in the Allen C. Lewis contests, is a member of the Current Topics Club. In the Parnassian Society, which is the collegiate men's club, more work in debating has been accomplished this year than ever before, and it is thought that the standard of excellence has been raised considerably. One valuable feature was a compulsory debate held during the winter quarter, a contest which aroused wide interest in the society and which resulted in some excellent speaking. Messrs. Beezley, I-Iazlewood, Stickel and Iuhnke were chosen as the representative speakers of the society. Undoubtedly public speaking will receive much attention at the Institute during the coming year. I 25