Potomac State College - Catamount Yearbook (Keyser, WV)

Page 9 text:

p IN THE FOOTHILLS of the Allegheny Mountains at Keyser in the eastern pan- handle of West Virginia is Potomac State School of West Virginia University, one of over 650 junior colleges in the United States and the only publicly supported one in this state. Potomac State, in celebration of the fiftieth anniversary of its founding, points with pride to the fact that this milestone in its history is a contribution to the life and growth of education in the state as a whole. Of the 22 institutions of higher education in West Virginia, Potomac State is one of four junior colleges, -the others being Beck- ley, Greenbrier College for Women, and Greenbrier Military School. Potomac State has been a junior college since 1921. In 1935 the legislature placed it under the management of the Board of Governors of West Virginia University and its name became officially Potomac State School of West Virginia University. The origin of the school, however, goes back fifty years. At the turn of the century, West Virginia was still a young state and its educational development was undergoing a period of transition. High schools were inadequate and preparatory schools were almost nonexistent. The growing population of the state called for the establishment of more secondary institutions of learning. Judge Francis Marion Reynolds of Keyser, a member of the House of Delegates, framed and introduced a bill which was passed February 15, 1901, establishing the Keyser Preparatory Branch of West Virginia Uni- versity. He had the support of several other men, both in the Legislature and in Keyser. One of these men, Colonel Thomas B. Davis of Keyser, donated 16 acres of land on Fort Hill for the erection of a school building. By spring 1902 the school building was under construction, and that fall 80 students enrolled with Lloyd Lowndes Friend as prin- cipal. He served as principal from 1902 to 1905. His successors at the Keyser Prepara- tory School were Thomas Haught 11905- 1908l, Loraine Fortney 11908-1909r, J. D. Muldoon 41909-19111, and J. C. Sanders, vice- principal since 1903, who served as acting principal until the appointment of Joseph Webster Stayman in 1911. During Mr. Stayman's regime 11911-19361 the school grew in two major respects. First, the physical plant expanded to meet the demands of increased enrollment: and second, the school became a junior college and received changes in name. During the first 12 years of the school's existence, the original administration build- ing was the lone structure on the campus. Young men were given living quarters in the old Keys House several blocks from the school and young ladies from out of town lived in private homes. A dormitory building later named Davis Hall was completed in 1914 on an additional grant of land from Colonel Davis. It housed men in one wing and women in the other but is used today for men only. Tragedy struck the school May 3, 1917, when a fire of uncertain origin destroyed the Administration Building and all the records. Another administration building, containing offices and classrooms still in use today, was erected on the same site in 1919. During World War I and the years imme- diately following, the Keyser Preparatory Branch of VVest Virginia University found itself struggling to justify its existence. Efforts were made to strengthen it with the addition of a course in home economics and the purchase of 125 acres of land for ex- perimental farming with not too great success. By 1921 it was felt that local high schools were adequate to meet the demands for secondary education in the area, and in that year the Legislature changed the scope of the Work to that of a junior college, at the same time changing the school's name to Potomac State School. Mr. Stayman became the first president. D. A. Christopher was the first dean, suc- ceeded in 1922 by Frank Mauzy, who served until 1936. k J 9 4 W I' F401 imxxx XX, j J l WZ 0.9

Page 8 text:

Qofcfen rqnnia 1 ! A X' Catamount Staff Editor-in-Chief . . . ................... Norma Alt Assistants. . . .......... Anna High, Wilma Stuth Business Managers. ..... john Olnoryshko, Ray C. Coffman .Assistants ....... Marguerite Bennett, Charles Workman Advertising Manager ..................... Anne Wilson Assistants ,......... James Chambers, Margaret Eagle. Dolores Vlfillhide, Mary Mosser, Jeanne Ludwig Art Editor ....... ...................... R obert Davis Sports Editor .... .................. B illy Ray Dunn Make-up Editors. . . ..., Peggy ,Io Crane, Wilhelmina Bailey Assistants. . . . . .Sharon Young, Patricia Armstrong Sponsors ...... .... M r. and Mrs. David Cu. Nuzum

Page 10 text:

szaza amz, nwaam, The change to junior college status was not a clean-cut break with the past, how- ever, for the school's program continued to contain some secondary work of a prepara- tory nature and even some normal depart- ments. By 1929, all offerings were put on a strictly college level and made to conform with the Lower Division at the University. The Legis- lature of 1935 placed the college under the management of the Board of Governors of West Virginia University and the name be- came Potomac State School of West Virginia University. Since its beginning as a junior college, Potomac State has grown in stature to take its place among the institutions of higher learning in the state. Most of the students have come from West Virginia and nearby Maryland, Pennsylvania and Virginia. Other states, especially Maine, New Jersey, New York, and Delaware have been represented by fairly large numbers of students. Even Sweden and Puerto Rico have been represented. Among additions to the physical plant were the following which were completed before Mr. Stayman's presidency ended: Reynolds Hall, a residence for women 41925lg a home for the president: a chemistry build- ing improvised from a small frame structure at one corner of the campus, the College Gymnasium 41928b3 and an athletic field was laid out on a part of the farm land 419323. Ernest Elliott Church became president of the college and Kirkland Shepherd McKee its dean in the fall of 1936. The physical plant of the college con- tinued to grow. Homes for six faculty families were erected 419361, a modern dairy barn was built 419407, the State Farm was increased to 260 acres 419435, Arcadia Heights housing area for veterans was provided 419461, a portable building contain- ing two classrooms and a Student Center were added 419471. The celebration of the fiftieth anniversary of the school was heightened by the com- pletion of an 8S800,000 Science Hall this year. This new building dedicated October 20, P .A X serves the departments of agriculture, bio- logical sciences, chemistry, engineering, geology, home economics, and physics. Well Balanced Program Today, Potomac State with its 20 acres of campus and 368 acres of farm land, its well equipped physical plant, and its well staffed faculty, is preparing students who will earn their collegiate degrees in the upper divisions of senior colleges, is training young men and women to do useful and profitable work following the termination of two years train- ing in semiprofessional courses, and is serv- ing the community in offering an adult education program. Potomac State is fully accredited by the North Central Association of Colleges and Secondary Schools, the University of the State of New York, and by the American Medical Association Council for Pre- Medical Work. A well balanced program of extra- curricular activities provides social and cul- tural advantages for the students. A student- faculty committee on public exercises ar- ranges for a series of convocations to bring to the campus a variety of programs in the form of lectures, music, and drama of nationally recognized merit. The student newspaper, The Pasquino, and the yearbook, The Catamount, provide an outlet for those with writing ability. There are three fra- ternities and three sororities, Sigma Phi Omega honor society, and Delta Psi Omega dramatic honorary. The Newman Club and the Christian Youth Fellowship encourage the spiritual life of the student. Other clubs are Players, Singers, Home Economics, Folio Book, Engineers, Radio, Women's Athletic Association, Band, Orchestra, Debaters, Medi-Sci, Sports, and a newly organized 4-H Club. Forty-one former students gave their lives in World War II. Sergeant Edward Kelly was awarded the Congressional Medal of Honor posthumously. Currently there are 345 young men and women students attending Potomac State and 33 instructors. --ELIZABETH A. ATWATER Q, -a-9 . as- Em sw im ' 'Q 2 ,L ig. 355,