Springfield College - Massasoit Yearbook (Springfield, MA)

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Athletics had been dominant in the institution from the first but it was not until 1887 that the physical work as a profession and as a distinct course in the school was started. In the infancy ol' this department it had as its leaders such men as Dr. Luther H. Culick and Mr. Robert J. Roberts. Dr. Cfulick was a recent graduate of a medical school in New York, while Mr. Roberts Was a 1110813 popular and successful physical director in the Boston Young lVlen's Christian Association at the time his services were procured. The College has the unique distinction of being the birthplace ol' a systematic code of ethics in connection with athletics and also of having invented the game which is now so very popular, the game ofbaskct ball. Several rather striking changes have come about during the thirty years of the life of the institution, the most notable of which arc: CID lts locationg Czj the general trend ofthe courses, and Q35 its material advancement. . While the school was in its infancy it was located at Win- chester Park. Because of the need for more space in which to carry on their activities, the location was changed to the present place. The College at present is located on Alden Street and Hick- ory Street, in such a way as to overlook Massasoit Lake in two directions. Because of the natural art surrounding the College this site will undoubtedly continue to be the home of the Young lVlen's Christian Association College. The general trend of the two main courses to be taken here has been most encouraging indeed. The Secretarial Course,,the earliest of any of the College courses, has grown in breadth of vision, depth ol' insight, and in the number of students who respond to the call. Today the Secretarial Course, from the numerical point of view, has increased four-fold. This growth has been due to the splendid training to be had here and the demand on the part of the rapidly-growing Young Men's Christian Association for more men and more ellicient men. The Physical Course sta.rted in the spring of 1887 and has had an interesting growth. It has increased many fold also, and in spite of the lead the Secretarial Course had to begin with, the Physical Course is now decidedly the more largely attended of the two. As rapidly as the Young Men's Christian Association has grown and has created the need for new offices, just so rapidly has 15

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s 1 S ,y R rx A- C 'X L ' '1 '-' , ltr ' + 1' X lk ,' 1 A ' f LFUW U ' W A, L- U- v--- ly Q . 1 . shining waters of Lake Massasoit is situated the International Young Men's Christian Association College. The College with its magnihcent array of buildings stands on a bluff which overlooks the large mirror-like lake for a stretch of nearly two miles in one direction and for a half-mile in the other. There she stands, looking mutely down upon the silently moving waters of the lake, watching them as they go on and on to become the waters renewed and refreshed of a larger body of water. For one who knows the College a.nd its ideals, the lake seems a part of the College curriculum, for it expresses in silent words the College ideals. lt is slowly, cautiously carrying away the conserved debris and depositing in its place new and fresh water. Rev. David Allen Reed, a Christian minister in Springheld, Mass., conceived the idea of training Christian workers. So in 1885 this institution was organized. Because of thc great need for trained men in the Y. M. C. A. field this institution gradually leaned in that direction, and in 1890 it bore the name of the Young Men's Christian Association Training School. ln 1891 the school authorities saw the need of extending the opportunities of spe- cialization presented here to foreign students, and as a result the name again was changed to the lnternational Young Mc-:n's Chris- tian Association Training School. The school during this time was for the most part a Training School for Secretarial men in the Y. M. C. A. HI-ERE the pines stand on high, o,er the far- 14

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the College tried to meet that need. As a result of this effort the following courses now exist within the College curriculum: C15 the Secretarial Course, C25 the Physical Course, C31 the Boys' VV0rk Coursey QQ the County Work Course. A new course, the County Work Course for Physical Directors will be started in the near future. The College and its supporters should be given great credit for bringing about the conditions which exist as expressed by the following Table of Growth: 1. Growth in the number of Students 1891-Q2 39 students 1914.-I5 276 students 2. Growth in Tuition Receipts . I8QI-Q2 352,080 ' 1914-15 26,400 3. Growth of College Budget . . 1891-92 22,250 19111--15 73,665 4.. Growth of College Endowment . 1891-92 ...... 1914-15 122,800 5. Growth of the Net Property 1891-92 18,000 191-L-15 569,994 The future of the College is one upon which we have our great- est hopes and into which we thrust our utmost confidence. lt is anticipated that in the very near future an extra year will be added to the college course here, which will from a standpoint of time and material covered, make it far more eflicient than it is today. The nature of this year's work would be of a general character, and it would be required of all the men in the school. Perhaps it is wise to say that biology will hold a very prom- inent place in this extra year, for it would assist much in bring- ing about the desired effect in the general course since its object is to give the men a general foundation for their religious think- ing. This course in biology would culminate in organic evolution, showing man in all of his developments, mentally, morally, and physically, and would also show just what place man holds in the great cosmic scheme. The general theme running throughout the College curriculum is The Study of Man. Three of the most essential subjects in this connection are biology, psychology, and sociology. Our courses in psychology and sociology are admir- ably well-developed and in order that our study may be complete we must add the third subject, biology. 16