University of Wisconsin Oshkosh - Quiver Yearbook (Oshkosh, WI)

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THE SCHOOL What was the most important event in the history of the school? Was it the fire of 1916? It may have been. It would appear, however, that no fire, however devastating, could dampen the ardor of students and faculty, or halt the steady progress of the school. More likely it was a law passed by the state legislature in 1925. That law granted certain added powers to the Board of Normal School Regents. The Board was empowered to change the name of the school from Oshkosh State Normal School to Oshkosh State Teachers College and to establish in it curricula leading to the degree of Bachelor of Education. That does not mean that good work had not been done in the old Normal School days. Quite the contrary! To be sure, students who had successfully completed the eighth year of the elementary school were admitted to the Normal School. The entrance requirement was not high. The work done was sound, however. In 1897 the University of Wisconsin agreed to admit graduates of the Normal School to its junior class as candidates for a Bachelor of Philosophy degree. In 1911 graduation from high school was required for admission, and in the same year a two-year college course and a two-year pre-professional course were added to the curricula. In 1914 specialized courses for Rural, Primary, Intermediate, Grammar Grades, and Secondary School Divisions were approved by the Board of Regents, and in 1921 four-year curricula for high school and manual arts teachers were authorized. lum, that for kindergarten-primary teachers, was authorized. The graduation day of June, 1927, was a memorable occasion. Degrees were granted to eleven graduates from the four-year Junior High School curriculum in the Division of Secondary Education. Academic caps and gowns were worn for the first time. The college was accredited as a class A teachers college by the American Association of Teachers Colleges in 1928. In the same year it was placed on the accredited list of teachers colleges by the North Central Association of Colleges and Secondary Schools. A year later it was recognized as a degree-granting institution by that association. In 1937 the college lost a distinctive feature. The Department of Industrial Education was abolished by the Board of Regents. The history of the department goes back to courses in the manual arts introduced by Mr. Livingston L. Summers in 1902. At the end of its first year, 1871. the Normal School published a catalogue in which it announced its courses and set forth such advantages as it had to offer. This catalogue states that the beauty of the lake scenery, the salubrious and invigorating climate render the school's natural surroundings all that can be desired. It then adds that the healthful and invigorating climate enables the student to endure severe study with comparative ease. Oshkosh students are indeed fortunate. Degrees Are Granted After 1925, the school became a degreegranting institution, a college. All curricula, except in the Rural Division, were extended to four years, and a three-year minimum course for primary and intermediate students was set up. In 1939 a new four-year curricu- Assembly Programs Vary The daily assembly was a feature of early Normal School days. Students assembled in the morning for exercises at which a passage from the Bible was read, prayer was offered, and the president spoke briefly on some inspirational subject. Assemblies Seniors, 1896 Machine Shop, Industrial Arts Building

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EARLY STRUGGLES point of desert, or from any superiority of location. This point is self-evident . .. that somebody has sold, and probably somebody has been bought. These were harsh words but once the question was settled controversy soon died down. Interest shifted to the new building to be constructed on the site chosen. In 1869 the Oshkosh Journal took note that The grounds are ample, pleasant, away from the bustle and confusion of the city, and yet near enough for all practical purposes. It will take until winter, probably, to complete the building in all parts, but when it is done, it will be substantial, handsome, and very convenient. Construction of the building proceeded apace. In May. 1870, the Oshkosh Journal reported that the State Normal School building . . . will receive its finishing touches in Auqust, and open for scholars in September. In July the Oshkosh Journal reported the Board of Regents had met and decided that it would not be possible to open the school in Oshkosh this year for want of funds. It was ascertained that after paying the balance due on the building here, and other necessary expenses, there would remain barely enough funds to run the other schools during the current year. It is too bad. but we suppose it can't be helped. School Opens School opened September 19. 1871, with an enrollment of 46 ladies and gentlemen. The State Normal School had become a reality. Before the close of the first academic year the enrollment rose to 158. Oshkosh was fast becoming a modern city. Its twenty-four saw mills gave first place to the lumber industry in the city. Telephones were introduced in 1870. Three years later it was calculated that Oshkosh had eighteen miles of graveled streets, several of which were lighted by gas. There were many wooden planked sidewalks and the city had a population of 14,871. It was stated that the high school was the finest and most complete building in the state, while the State Normal School, the Northern Wisconsin Insane Asylum, and the Opera House, were also conspicuous. The most serious disaster suffered by the State Normal School struck suddenly March 22, 1916. The building built in 1870, and including three wings subsequently added, was destroyed by fire. An account of the fire was the leading story in the Oshkosh Northwestern for that day. It reported that The fire was discovered at about 4:30 o'clock, and is believed to have been burning some time before that. The origin is completely shrouded in mystery. It started under the roof over the auditorium or the mathematics department and broke through into the second floor near the president's office very early . . . There was much salvage from the building, although a considerable portion of that removed was badly damaged . . . While it had long been felt that the building was not only inadequate and steps had been taken to enlarge it. and while the older portions were antiquated and a perfect labyrinth of corridors forming almost a tangled maze, the students loved it as their alma mater. Then as now students could not resist loving the old place. Arch or returning Veterans, 1918 Main Street, 1946

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THE SCHOOL are now held, as the catalogue states, as often as suitable programs can be arranged. Local talent has been utilized. Speakers and artists have been procured from the outside. Robert Frost was presented in 1921 and Hamlin Garland in 1922. On later occasions Reinold Werrenrath, Paul V. McNutt, and Ted Shawn and his dancers were presented. The summer session owes its inception to the initiative of Professor W. C. Hewitt. He was authorized to try out his plan in the summer of 1893. The experiment proved successful. At first the sessions were held with-, out added support from the public budget. It was not until 1907 that the Board of Regents authorized summer sessions and appropriated five hundred dollars for the support of each. A summer quarter of eleven weeks has been offered from 1943 to 1946 in order to enable students to accelerate their training. Enrollment Fluctuates Prosperity, depression, and war have all had their influence upon the number of students in attendance at the school. The all-time high was reached in 1939-40. At that time, 1028 students were enrolled for the regular academic year and 878 for the summer session, making a total of 1906. During the depression years of the nineteen thirties the federal government came to the aid of persons out of work and students in need of assistance. The college received direct benefits from a number of government agencies during this period. Among these were the National Youth Administration, the Federal Art Project, and the Works Progress Administration. Students Aided The National Youth Administration at the college was administered by Dr. James F. Duncan. Students in need of work to earn money in order to attend college could find it through aid offered by the N. Y. A. About ten per cent of the students enrolled were thus employed. They served as assistants in science laboratories, in the college library, in the Oshkosh Public Museum, and in the Oshkosh Public Library. By means of the N. Y. A., a clerical project was maintained in which typing and mimeographing was done for members of the faculty. Mrs. Ethel J. Behncke was made supervisor of District Number Two of the Federal Art Project in the state. The district included eleven counties in northeastern Wisconsin. Sixteen artists were assigned to the project in the district. Tax supported institutions furnished the materials, but travel expenses were sustained by the supervisor. Through the assistance of Mr. Nile J. Behncke. Director of the Oshkosh Public Museum, the college was able to secure paintings produced under the project as they were made available in Milwaukee, Chicago, and Washington, D. C. The college benefited directly from the Museum, Handicraft, and Federal Arts Projects. Looms, lantern slides, Wisconsin relief maps, insect mounts, sculpture, printed and woven materials, wood blocks, paintings, and murals were allocated to the school. By means of funds made available through the Works Progress Administration the college was able to make needed improvements on the athletic field and to construct the grandstand. Tennis courts were similarly made possible at the college, and playgrounds for the training school children. The school's ability to achieve is a demonstrated fact; however the justification of the school is not in what it has done in the past, but what it does today and tomorrow. Biological Laboratory Grammar Department Room, 1898