Southeastern Oklahoma State University - Savage Yearbook (Durant, OK)

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Classes Held The first session of SEN began on June 14, 1909, and continued until July 30, when the last county examinations were given. There were no incidental fees or tuition charged for the visiting teachers from Bryan or the surrounding counties. This situation became possible when the city.of Durant agreed “‘to look after these (Binancial) matters.” Teachers were informed they could bring any textbooks they wished, but the ones adopted by the State Board of Education would be used as the basis of all normal work throughout’ the commonwealth. To insure healthy communications and understanding between the mun- icipal government of Durant and the new school, Moore arranged for a public meeting to be held at the city hall on April 24, 1909, to discuss the particulars of the town’s commitment. At the meeting, Moore was pleased to see a good representation from the city and the normal faculty. In his speech, he flattered the city and its people for the progressive arguments and effective campaign the local citizenry had used to win the contest for the state normal. Yet, securing the normal would not be enough, he believed. The residents of Durant must financially support the institution or it U- e would never survive. The appropriation for the new normal was only $25,000 annually, and this amount would simply « not be sufficient to run the school. As part of the successfulgStrugged waged to found Southeastern the city had pledged to supplement state appropriations as needed. Consequently, Moore proposed Normal, that the city supply a contingency fund of $10,000 by levying an additional school tax of five mills - which would double the present rates within the town; of this amount, $3,500 would be allocated to subsidize the salary fund. The remainder of the monies would be needed to pay tuition fees and other expenses involved in maintaining the new institution. Moore urged the listeners to realize “that the first school year would in all probability be the more important in its history.”” He could not over-emphasize the necessity of adequately funding the school to make the first year a great success. Moore reported that if the mail he had received was an indication, the city and institution could expect between four and five hundred teachers to attend the first session. After his speech, the city leaders assured Moore the council would take swift action to alleviate any

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| November before the State Board of | Affairs completed a contract with the || Jaughtery-Kirby Construction Com- gany for the first building. The cost was Photos: Opposite page: 1913 Manual Training Shop (top). The light-heartéd “Daughters of Rest,” (center) 1913. 1913 football team (bottom) with Coach Paul Laird. 1913 Baseball (above, top) played Hugo, Colbert, Caddo and Antlers High School. 1918 President’s Home (above) resembles the present building. to be $94,385.40, and the work was to start by December. The re be named Morrison Hall many years later in memory of Dr. W.B. Morrison, would not be completed and occupied until January, 1911. Following the visit of the state officials in early June, several formal protests were made to the Regents about the decision to locate in the peach orchard. After a special inspect, no change was made in the location. The Durant Chamber of Commerce passed a resolution condemning the sentiments expressed in the petitions and urged the Regents to ignore the protest and immediately let the contract for the construction of the building. Meanwhile, the Normal Board an- nounced that a president and faculty would be selected, and classes would commence in whatever temporary quarters could be found. The buildings made available by the city and its residents for the summer session were those of Durant High School and the Oklahoma Presbyterian College. The private Presbyterian institution, which was in the process of becoming a junior college for girls, had just constructed a new building on a larger campus in the northwest part of the city. In 1909, the original OPC buildings (located on the present day site of Washington Irving School) were pur- chased by the Durant School Board, who then authorized their use by the Southeastern Normal School until completion of its new bui lding. These temporary facilities consisted of a two-story brick building and some wooden dorms. ‘ The State Board of Education soon decided that the first faculty would be headed by Marcus Egbert Moore, a young man in his late thirties. Moore had been superintendent of schools at Marietta for five years. His tenure at Southeastern last only two years - about the average for the first five presidents - but he stayed long enough to get the school organized and successfully under way despite a host of problems. The Board also named a vice-president for the new school. Professor Elihu B. Hinshaw, a prominent member of the Oklahoma and National Normal Textbook committees, received the appointment. He was director of Bloomfield Seminary. Almost as soon as they were named, both men began a hectic’ but well-organized attempt to make the first summer session of Southeastern a success. They completed a brochure explaining the organization and had copies mailed to about 1,000 teachers in Southeastern Oklahoma.

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re ern eee re Burra Photos: Opposite page: 1918 Boys’ Basketball (top) was coached by Paul Laird. 1918 Maintenance workers (bottom). This page: First Lieut. R.L. Merritt, Commanding Officer (top left) of the Student’s Army Training Corps. Dr. Edmund Dandridge Murdaugh, LL.M, Ped. D., (top right) president, history and philosophy of education. 191 Hygiene and Camp Sanitation Class (above) was related to World War I. It also shows Slew Hewitt. 1921 Yearbook ad (right) for a theatre featured a $10,000 pipe organ. financial crisis. Moore also discussed at the meeting one of the most pressing problems facing the opening of the proposed summer session - the lack of an auditorium large enough to house all the expected guests at one time. The concern was quickly answered, when on June 11, 1909, the trustees of the First Methodist Church of Durant voted to offer the use of its sanctuary for the summer session. Elated by this development, Moore publicly expressed his appreciation for the generosity of the First Methodist Church members and his hope that many Durant residents would attend the during the nightly chapel services summer term. Pee Ce was Meee Tint cw mi. fret vn Oie t toy IM eNO ME ML IN cl AE EE as To further insure the success of the beginning of SEN, President Moore announced he was asking all the county superintendents from the so utheastern state to attend a convention to be held in Durant on April section of the 29 for the express purpose of confering with them about the summer session. Moore hoped he could use such a meeting to persuade the county superintendents to cancel their own summer county normal institutes and bring their teachers to Durant on June 14. The plan succeeded and the county superintendents from the public school systems of Choctaw, Coal, Atoka, Carter, Lane, Johnston and Bryan counties agreed not to hold their own normals and bring their teachers to Durant. Consequently, by securing this agreement, Moore had assured th e fact that the summer normal would be a major educational assembly. feature which especially appealed to the county One innovative superintendents was conceived by VP Hinshaw. With the cooperation of President Moore, Hinshaw planned.and organized a model county rural school and a model city grade school in which teachers could observe and participate. The model county school covered the entire eight grades of the primary level and was taught by one teacher. OUT et Ey pert ary