Northeastern University - Cauldron Yearbook (Boston, MA)

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A Commuters Day - ' Z ri0 Campus humor from the 1921 Cauldron. The popularity, variety, and ever- increasing formalization of Education Division programs led in March, 1916, to the incorporation of North- eastern College. The 1916 Catalog de- clares, The College is not a new insti- tution, but the realization of an ideal carefully worked out and persistently followed for a period of twenty years. A thorough investigation of all the Association Schools was conducted in 1914 by George H. Martin, former secretary of the State Board of Educa- tion, prior to application for incorpo- ration. This investigation concluded that all the technical and professional schools were of college or graduate grade. The 1916 Catalog capsulizes the development of the College: The Association system starting with eve- ning courses only, elementary in char- acter, brief and unconclusive, and with no endowment, adequate space or equipment, and no criteria to guide them, have passed successively through the realm of elementary and of secondary education, into the pro- fessional and technical school realm retaining and developing nearly every feature ever undertaken, and finally emerging as a fully organized college with both day and evening courses, splendidly housed and equipped. Upon incorporation, the Education Division ' s programs were divided into two groups: the college level schools were renamed Northeastern College; the secondary grade courses contin- ued under the old title of Depart- ment of Education. The Northeast- ern College group consisted of the School of Law, in its 19th year; the School of Commerce and Finance, in its tenth year; the School of Co-oper- ative Engineering, in its seventh year; and the School of Liberal Arts, which was established in the Fall of 1916 . Since its beginnings in 1898, the student enrollment had increased by 768 per cent, from 419 to 3,260 stu- dents. The number of teachers had risen from 12 to 214; the number of courses had increased from 20 to 336; and the budget had gone from $2,800 to $185,418. In their preliminary statement in 1916, the Trustees glorified the low operating costs of Northeastern, since it didn ' t need to pay for its own build- ings and facilities. However, the state- ment stresses the urgent need of an endowment to be spent on a new building containing lecture halls, lab- oratories, amphitheatres, and drafting rooms; additional scientific equip- ment; and the creation of more liber- al scholarship funds.

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r r f F f P r iiii|;::;;!| iiiili; ' ' ■,rrrrrrr rs New YMC A Building - 1913 . The new facilities and the coagulat- ing curricula gave a new lease on life to the Education Division. With bright outlook, the 1913 Catalog stressed that any man with ability and good character should be able to suc- ceed in any of the programs . In describing its new facilities, the catalog emphasized the importance of the location, surroundings, and physical appointments of the school: The location ought to be healthful, accessible, and attractive. Its build- ings ought to be properly heated, lighted and ventilated and above all conducive to the health and progress of students at all seasons of the year. Having sweltered in the middle of January through a class in a room in Robinson Hall, where the windows cannot be opened, one can see that the above is an ideal toward which North- eastern continues to strive even now. The new YMCA facilities also boasted one of the country ' s largest indoor salt water swimming pools, heated to a comfortable warmth by an elaborate pipe system. While educating a good lawyer or engineer, the Education Division re- tained its desire to concurrently build men of good character. The 1913 Ca- talog thus exhorts students to avoid excessive social and athletic activities. Furthermore, it is assumed that stu- dents come to the school for a serious purpose, and that they will cheerfully conform to such regulations as may from time to time be made . . . Stu- dents are expected to behave with decorum . . . and to pay due respect to (the School ' s) officers . For students commuting to school, the Catalog points out that the facili- ties are easily accessible by various railroads and electric trolley cars. The Education Division sponsored various monthly socials and entertain- ments for the exclusive enjoyment of its students, including an outdoor field meet, held annually in May. The Huntington Schools offered a wide variety of student activities in conjunction with the YMCA includ- ing an array of athletic teams, a school newspaper, a Glee Club, and an Orchestra. Some of the more unique activities included a Congress, similar in com- position to the national body, with each student representing a state. The purpose of the club was to debate proposed bills and gain public speak- ing experience. Another oddity was the moving pictures series held in Bates Hall, one of the subsidiary sec- tions of the YMCA complex. The educational films shown in the series were evaluated in the 1914 Catalog as a means by which much informa- tion can be received ... in a short time with little effort (nascent McLuhanism!). The overall atmosphere of the pre- war schools more resembled a junior high school of today. The school day went from 9 a.m. to 2:30 p.m., with a 30-minute break for a light lunch- eon. Students were not permitted to leave the building without permission except at lunch time. The 1914 Cata- log explained, The pupil ' s time be- longs to the school and is at the dis- posal of the teacher in the same way as it would be at the command of an employer. YMCA ' s new heated salt water pool — 1913.

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Electronic Measure Lab — c. 1927. The School of Liberal Arts, its es- tablishment being announced in the 1916 Trustees staten ent, opened in September of that year. The purpose of the school was to offer the advan- tages of a bachelor ' s degree in a re- duced number of years. Requir ing Your good deed for today that refreshes No matter how busy you are — bow bard you work or play — don ' t forget you owe your- self that refresbing pause with Coca-Cola. You can always find a minute, here and -E.ISTC?! ! -.— r. there, and you don ' t have to look far or lonct Kice-«-- Fomou. wait loiis for Coca-Cola. A pure drink of chnmp-.ona -.- CocH-cain nstural flavors — always ready for you — I ' ll p. m-tTs-T -rr ice-cold — around the corner from any- o coa.1 NBC NMwork wbcrc. AloD vlth miUious of people every day, you ' ll find in Coca-Cola ' s wholesome refreshment a delightful way to well-being. only two years of study to obtain a certificate of advanced standing quali- fying the student for day study at a regular liberal arts school, the plan allowed the student to work during the day while studying at night at Northeastern. Non-paying day stud- ies at liberal arts college would then only require two years from a person ' s productive life instead of four. At this stage, the co-op plan operat- ed in bi-weekly segments, with A students working two weeks while B students studied, the roles being reversed the following two weeks. The school year went from the second week in September to the second week in June. The wages detailed in the 1916 Catalog of the Co-operative Engineer- ing School ranged from $5 per week for first year students, to $10 per week for seniors. In March, 1920, Northeastern Col- lege, consisting mainly of the Co-op- erative Engineering School, was em- powered by the Massachusetts Gener- al Court to grant bachelors degrees in civil, mechanical, chemical, and elec- trical engineering. A fifth degree in administrative engineering was added in 1921, and its name was changed to industrial engineering in 1928.