Kent State University - Chestnut Burr Yearbook (Kent, OH)

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RECONVERSION IN EDUCATION . . . EXPERIENCING a gradual transformation since the beginning of the fall quarter, by the end of the spring quarter the university was well established as one of Ohio ' s leading veterans ' colleges. Ever since the first few rehabilitation students enrolled in early 1944, the school had seen that its future was to be closely linked with the future of eleven million Gl ' s. First regarded with an awesome wonderment, Gl Joe College today is accepted as on average student, along with his counterpart from the WAC or WAVE. It is not considered unusual for a student to be married and have several children, for him to be over 30 years old, the wearer of a presidential citation or an artificial limb, or to be the former leader of thousands of men. Where John Boesch rode herd on a bunch of horses, others manned flocks of jeeps, coveys of 17s, squadrons of PT ' s and LCI ' s, or manuevered silken parachutes, or just slogged along on foot. But in the classroom these men meet on a common level. Starting with 105 veterans in the fall, by winter registration time there were 435, and 1100 enrolled in the spring. They moved in like an AMG unit, taking over Windham housing project, commuting from Akron and Ravenna, and filling private homes in Kent. There were other problems besides the housing difficulties. There was the question of food for service- sharpened appetites. Entertainment had to be found for those long hours of off duty from the books. And the university itself had to adjust to the needs of these men. Textbooks and classroom space had to be located. Being more mature and in a hurry to moke up for those lost years, the servicemen and women required more practicality in the courses they followed. Their thirst for knowledge was overwhelming. As students, their averages were high and they showed an enthusiastic willingness to work. For some, college was old stuff. For others who would have been unable to attend a uni- versity had it not been for the Gl bill, college was a new and glamorous experience. In some cases there were personal problems of not being able to concentrate on studies, finding chosen fields uninteresting, or being unused to new civilian surroundings. Old students seemed to feel this change more than others, because the school was different and they were rather uncertain that they liked it. But there were no cases of ex-GI ' s rioting against the administra- tion, diving into gutters when student pilots buzzed the campus or scrounging faculty autos. For several years, battle jackets, jump boots, pinks and blues will be proper dress for veteran- students. But at Kent the veteran will soon be a non-existant personality, giving way to the general classification of Kent Stater . Then the reconversion will be complete.

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OUR POST WAR THERE is no typical Gl Joe College, and for that reason we picked John Boesch to portray the college student returned from the wars. There ' s certainly nothing typical about John Boesch. Johnny left school as a senior when his Uncle Sugar called in 1943. He dragged his 6-foot, 200-pound frame through the dust of Fort Riley and muck of the Philippines and came home to Kent in January, 1946. John had been associated with an unglamorous organization called the First Cavalry division. This Hell for Leather outfit was occupied mainly with carrying on operations around the Admiralties, Leyte and Manila, in the southwest Pacific — General MacArthur ' s command. How- ever, John Boesch did no hobnobbing with generals, or even second looies. You see, he was PRIVATE Boesch. The Japs didn ' t knock out John, but malaria did, and, after a spell in New Guinea hospitals, he strode into Registrar E. C. Stopher ' s office. Without even an I have returned, John grinned and dove into — the nearest registration line. So, he moved into the Gamma house, did his share of Brady sitting, cut a few classes and carried on much as he had before. He also became social chairman of his fraternity, helped it win bridge honors and headed the reactivation of Delta Sigma Pi, the business honorary. June rolled around. John went to the spring formal, shot a few holes of golf, hit the books, passed his exams and was among the graduates on Commencement day. He then jammed his belongings into his jalopy, said goodby to his fraternity brothers and drove home to Willoughby. That ' s John Boesch ' s story. It ' s very simple. It ' s not typical. It ' s not important to very many besides John Boesch. But what is important is what was happening to KSU while John was readjusting and reconverting to a civilian pace. For Kent, 1946 was a year of reconversion in education .

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