James Madison University - Bluestone Schoolmaam Yearbook (Harrisonburg, VA)

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FIFTY YEARS OF PROGRESS I IIK I!)M pri ' sidi ' iil 111 Iho senidr class, with a pick and a fi iir-leaf clover in her hands, lirolu ' the ;rrinnul fur Hiin ' isi n Hall. The ceremony continued when the vice-president sho t ' li ' il I hi- i ' ii ' sl scoDp of t ' arlh. IHK oiirnerslone was laid for Spotswood Hall immediately prior to the commencement exercises oC 1916. Masonic Rites were held, as was true of all earlier cornerstone ceremonies. rlFTY YEARS AGO this .spring, on March 14, 1908, the General Assembly of Virginia provided for the establishment of the State Normal and Industrial School for Women at Harrisonburg, Virginia. A year and a half later, on September 28, the first session of the school began. It consisted of a forty-two acre campus and three buildings — an academic building. a dormitory, and a farm house which was on the property when it was acquired. Instruction was begun with a faculty of fifteen under the able and dedicated leadership of President .Julian A. Burruss. The minimum entrance requirement in 1909 was completion of the seventh gi ' ade or its etiui ' alent. Girls could come to Harrisonburg for all or part of their high-school work and could complete a two-year course beyond the hi ' jh-school level. Completion of the two years of post high-school work carried with it receipt of the highest diploma offered by the Normal School, the full diploma. As a pioneer in Virginia, the Normal School em- phasized and developed vocational education for young women. After nine years of growth and expansion, the Household Arts Department became the Depart- ment of H mie Economics. F ' or the following twenty years. Hari ' isonburg was the center for home economics training in Virginia, and this departmeiit remains one of the stronge.st in the South. The Rural Arts program, instituted in 1910, at- tracted much attention in Virginia as well as other parts of the country. The State Normal and Industrial School for Women h.nd the fii ' st rui ' al school super ' isor in Virginia and one of the first in the United States. Traveling by horse and buggy in all kinds of weather. Normal School students obsei ' ved and taught in the •schools of Rockingham County. Raiiidly academic standards were raised and high school courses eliminated. In 1914 the name of the school was changed to the State Normal School for W.imen at Harrisonburg. Two years later, the (Jeneral Assembly authorized the offering of a four-year college coin ' se leading to the bachelor of science degree. This degree was first awarded in .June. 191!), to nine students. Dr. Burruss left Harrisonburg in 1919 to assume the presidency of V.P.I, and for the next thirty years progress and growth continued under the efficient and untiring leadership of the late Dr. Samuel P. Duke. Another milestone was reached in 1921 when the Nirmal School became the State Teachers College at Harrisonburg. This signified that only work on the college level was being offered. Students were being graduated with degrees in elementary and secondary education and in home economics. In 1925, the camjius appeared barren along side the unpaved highway. The newly erected Sheldon Hall served as an academic building with an auditorium located up- stairs. The fii-st campus radio was put in this auditorium and made available to the students.

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»- — J .. BEVERLEY PEARCE EDITOR NORA JANE ROBERTS BUSINESS MANAGER DR. CRYSTAL THEODORE MISS SARA ANDERSON FACULTY ADVISORS

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AT MADISON COLLEGE In 1938 Harrisonlnirff Teachers College became Madi- son Collejfe. The institution was now officially a multi- Iiui ' pose college for the education of young women. Teacher training remained its major function. Init the college began to offer work leading to straight bachelor of science and bachelor of art degrees and to a bachelor of science degree in business. Teaching curricula were broadened to include a program for training teachers of business and teachers of music. A two-year course i?i business, leading to the secretarial diploma, was in- troduced; and the pre-nursing program was expanded to provide pre-technician and pre-medical training. After World War 11. the College was authorized to admit men as day .students. The admission of men has continued and has enabled Madison to help meet the postwar demand for educational facilities and to contribute men to the teaching profession, as well as to the field of business. When Dr. Duke retired in 1949, Madison College had grown to an institution of twenty-four buildings and a campus of sixty-two acres. The faculty num- bered 100 and the .student body, at the height of the postwar educational boom, had passed the 1,.300 mark. Kor the past eight years, Madison College has con- tinued its develojiment undei- its third president, Dr. (;. Tyler Miller. Constant stress has been placed on the ini])rovement of the instructional program and on increasing the college ' s role of serving the educational Deeds of the state. Emphasis has been placed on a program fen ' the training of elementary and high-school librarians. Particular efforts have been made to en- courage students to enter the teaching field, and in recent years about two-thirds of the student body has been enrolled in teaching curricula. Further advance- ment of the instructional program for teachers oc- curred in 1954 with the inauguration of a graduate Pi ' ogram leading to a master ' s degree in education. Madison College now consists of a 240 acre tract of land and a sixty-two acre main campus. A new dormitory and a well equipped science building have been major additions to the buildings which now number twenty-eight. Two additional dormitories are under construction as well as a campus training school, and funds have been appropriated for a new infirmary. From its beginning. Madison College has em- phasized not only the preparation of students with high standards for teaching, but also the preparation of students for other useful occupations, for loyal citizenship, and for wholesome living. The College has constantly sought to instill in the minds of its students high ideals of service and of personal con- duct. On the following pages of this book, a Madison Schoolma ' am will unveil many of the scenes, events, and accomplishments which have made this school year at Madison seem significant. UrAWING, handwork, and woodwork were emphasized in manual arts classes. These subjects were basic requirements for teacher.s of ai ' t and manual training. t-OURSES in gardening, bee culture, and iioultry raising were ijart of the rural arts lirogram to prepare students for teaching and successful honiemaking. Much food for the dining hall was produced by the efforts of industrious students. •s : - .W .««• wLASS productions were of the highest calibre when the senior play marked the open- ing of a five-day commencement celebration. Weather permitting, the amphitheater behind Maury Hall was frequently used for student dramas and lyceum programs. • . iajK XiSl iaK