Siena College - Saga Yearbook (Loudonville, NY)

Page 16 text:

9 4L THE EXPANSION of the postwar years necessitated the erection of a temporary chapel. When the soldiers returned to the homes which they had defended, the colleges through- out the naton welcomed the students in ever- increasing numbers. In 1947, Siena became the largest college of general studies between New York City and Syracuse, with an enrollment of 2,752 students. Seventy per cent of the regis- trants were veterans. In order to provide class- room space prefabricated buildings were con- structed on the land adjacent to the gymnasium. When even these attempts failed, a hall in the 10 nearby town of Latham had to be rented. Though our halls here at Siena College were never closed all through the course of the war, thanks be to God, still our own present student body contains not only the natural growth from our High Schools, but a large percentage of veterans who were dreaming of Siena College and its halls while they were in the various battlefronts of our country in Europe, in Asia, and in the Middle East. These were the words of Rev. Mark Kennedy,

Page 15 text:

Fr. Mark Kennedy, O.F.M., was appointed by the Provincial as the new president. Fr. Mark had previously been Lector of Sacred The- ology at St. Bonaventure College and had held the title of Lector Generalis, the highest distinction in the field of education that can be conferred by the Franciscan Order. The academic year was necessarily altered with the adoption of a temporarily accelerated curriculum. Three semesters of college work in each calendar year became the basis of this approach to the emergency. Because of limited enrollment only freshmen attended the day session; all other students were registered in the evening division. In 1943 registration declined to two hundred and' ninety- four. In the midst of the war, December, 1943, Fr. Maurus Fitzgerald, O.F.M., expressed poignantly the spirit of courage that pervaded the hearts of Siena men: Without our religion to strengthen us, it would be a terrific struggle to carry on in the face of such difhculties. We are consoled by the fact that we are not carrying our cross alone. With the knowledge that we are lighting for what we believe to be right, with a clear conscience, are we not captains of our souls? This was Siena; this was America in the war years. The growth of the College was intangible. The tradition was formed by her sons throughout the world. This crisis brought maturity to Siena men and to their College. SIENA GRADUATE, American serviceman, and casulty of Anzio Beach- head, Paul Gregware jests with the Friars. SERVICEMEN on leave often visited their former instructors.

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THE VERY REVEREND Mark Kennedy, O.F.M., inspects the R.O.T.C. unit in 1950. then President of Siena, as he addressed the 1948 graduates. The students and faculty did not forget the debt of courageous sacrifice. On May 29, 1947, the Grotto of Our Lady of Lourdes was dedicated to the memory of the Siena war dead. This shrine is a lasting tribute to their deeds of supreme valor. The American people and their government learned a cardinal lesson from the military demands of the Second World War. Military preparation became a constant matter; the 11 THE SIENA COLLEGE Field Artillery R.O.T.C. Chose Saint Barbara as patroness. preserving of our way of life might again te- quite military force. To help answer the need for qualified officers the United States Army established a Field Artillery Reserve Training Corps at Siena in 1950. The course offers, upon successful completion, a commission of Second Lieutenant in the United States Army Reserve. This program has offered a service to the individual student desirous of a commission in the Army and t0 the nation desirous of able military personnel.