St Olaf College - Viking Yearbook (Northfield, MN)

Page 19 text:

.f 5-I -243 ,,. i:- -.:1'-Xf.'lE.. ,-.-,,,,,. ,--- ,. -A.,--f-f ,f ,,,-A , .. Y ,.-., .. ,., -,., 11 Li.. - 1,7 -Q -.. Our age is one of transition. Old things, having performed their service, are passing away. New conditions are creating new duties. Foundations for a new stage of development are being laid. There is demand for honest and intelligent workers to survey the field, to stake out the corners, and to establish the lines, so that the new building may be better than the old. What a glorious opportunity our college will have if it can rightly interpret the signs of the times so that it may inspire and efficiently assist young men and women to prepare for answering the call to service! May St. Olaf College heed the clarion call of the age to every institution as to every individual to leave the low-vaulted past and build more stately mansions as the swift seasons roll, to stand bravely for the cause of progress, to take a real part in the struggle of mankind for salvation. 126 Most Urgent Material Needs of St. Olaf College By P12012 P. G. SCHMIDT I-IE marked increase in attendance in the college department at 1 St. Olaf College during the last three or four years is very ' I gratifying indeed to all friends and supporters of the M jy f g' -1 institution. In IQIO-II the enrollment in the college gg ' was 220. The next year saw this number increased to f' 261, and this year the total enrollment will be above 330. In two years, the attendance in the college has increased about 100. Three years ago the number of students in the Freshman class was considerably below 100. Last year the number was 107, while so far this year nearly 150 have enroll- ed in this class. While this remarkable showing is a cause for intense gratification, it must nevertheless be admitted that it causes some needs that have been felt at our college already for a number of years, to become more and more imperative. The following brief summary of the present material needs of St. Olaf is written, not in a spirit of dissatisfaction or ingratitude because these needs have not been supplied as yet, but rather, first, in a spirit of thankfulness that our col- lege has prospered so much and continues to prosper, and that new needs are con- tinually arising, and secondly, in the hope that some solution may speedily be found for supplying the needs to which attention is here called and which are so keenly felt. St. Olaf has much in the way of material equipment for which we all are truly thankful. Its large and beautiful campus of nearly 140 acres of land, can 17 I 'MV r-fi R. xi 11 IA . .. ,.f'?.s ..,-1'-'L E- ess. ...X ff: 9 1 .Z K X Y ,.-. If iff 1.

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X WX xx T' 'N,f- A . i xy-. sjtm.f?Fe'ElTT-'S'7.' - live?-3 JSZ xy' ' ' ' ' 'if'-A19 V4 the heritage of the past, but that it shall so interpret the message of the past as to Q 42 create an inspiration which will make the life of the descendant better than that of Q? the ancestor. As a good steward it is not to return its talents without interest. That church college is an unworthy servant which does not make possible a better church than the one which laid its foundation. This is an opportunity before which any college or institution needs to stand with humility and reverence. St. Glaf College is also a Norwegian-American institution. As such it has a unique service to render. An individual, as a race, must be well rooted in the past to live completely and effectively. By circumstances of immigration the Nor- wegian-American has been separated from his ancestry and his country. He adopts his new country as readily as it adopts him, but it is for him a country without a past in any real sense such that he can feel the influence of its history as a stamina in his very marrow and bone. He needs some agency which will con- serve and interpret for him the history, the spirit of the two civilizations that he represents and so adapt the one to the other that the joint result shall excell either constituent. just such a work is a part of the functions of our college, and, if it is performed not narrowly and selfishly, but broadly and ideally, it will constitute a very valuable service not only to the special class to which it ministers, but also to the citizenship, the intellectual and spiritual welfare of the country as a whole. One of the criticisms made concerning American colleges in general is, that they lack individuality, show no variety in type. Our college is fortunate in hav- ing a particular work to do, a definite message to proclaim. It is not a duplicate of any other college. This prevents destructive competition and at the same time gives a specific character to the institution. It will be noticed that we have spoken of opportunity almost exclusively in terms of service. There are no better terms. According to this view our college will have its greatest possibilities and be worth the most when it renders the great- est service to mankind g for it is true of institutions as of individuals, that whoso- ever will be great let him be as one that serves. Our age is rich in inspiration for service. We are experiencing in this coun- try a revival of righteousness such as the world has scarcely seen before. Educa- tional, social, economic, and political problems are urgently demanding solution. All of them are vital to the welfare of the mass of the people, and all spring from a quickened conception as to the duty of a man to his neighbor. Our country is literally hungering for righteousness. In business, in labor, in professional life, in politics, in social relations, everywhere is heard the question, Who is my neigh- bor and how may I be to him as a brother? Ou-r time needs men and women who have much real knowledge, who have broadness of vision, who are dominated by high ideals, and who are filled with sympathy and the spirit of true service, to study and analyse these problems and to give themselves to the labor of their so- lution. 16

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sf -Ii da' .57 :Uk Wil Nr' XJR ' nf- ,..,Q,-- .- -T:,:--N-,,- .. ,, . - .,. . V ...A.f-f' 4:7 - -s-N-Jvv Q W-.- ---M, 5.4 xl!-.img zmj ' 73 za., J 4. ff- I sl 426 ai af Q f hardly be excelled by any college in the west or middle west. The dormitories, chapel, library and central heating plant compare very favorably with buildings for these purposes found on the grounds of other institutions similar to our own. Students coming to St. Olaf College are surely provided with a beautiful home as long as they remain here. Possibly in this respect as much is done at our college as is done at any other college in the state. The need for dormitories here was felt some years ago and ample provision has been made to supply the wants of the institution in this respect. At the present time, the needs of St. Olaf are better equipments for carrying on the real work of the institution. In the buildings which are now found on the campus an attempt is being made to carry on work for which these buildings were not intended. The boys' dormitory for instance serves not only as a dormitory, but also as a gymnasium, a boarding establishment for the entire institution and a music hall. The old Main building was erected when the school was first estab- lished. The boarding department was located in the basement, a part of the first floor was occupied by the families of the faculty, the second floor was used for recitation purposes, while the third floor consisted of dormitory rooms for boys. That was in the days of small beginnings and such an arrangement was possible because the number of students was very small, and few recitation rooms were needed. This building has been somewhat remodeled since that time, and it now serves as our administration and recitation building. In it are now located the administration offices, all of our laboratories, and almost all of our recitation rooms. Although S-t. Olaf College is one of the largest colleges in these western states, it is probably as poorly equipped so far as buildings and equipment for ed- ucational work are concerned as any other college. In the two buildings mentioned above, namely, the men's dormitory and the main building, the college is trying to carry on work which many other colleges are doing in five or more buildings, and we shall briefly call attention to the three buildings which- are lacking here at St. Olaf. Manifestly, our first and greatest need is better provision for recitation work. There are now too few class rooms and most of these which we have are too small. Many are not at all suited for recitation work as they were originally not at all in- tended to serve this purpose. Our largest class room will seat comfortably no more than 40 or 45 students, yet there are many classes in which the enrollment passes the 60 and 70 mark. A class in one of the languages recited all last year with an attendance of over 100. One of our scientific departments is located in a room about the size of an ordinary class room. The entire equipment of this de- partment is found in this room. There are enrolled in one of the classes in this department over 70 students, and these are expected to do efficient laboratory work here where there is hardly room for the class to be properly seated. It is impossi- ble to divide these large classes into sections because obviously an increased num- 18