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

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WE, THE 1966 QUIVER STAFF OF WISCONSIN STATE UNIVERSITY-OSHKOSH, DEDICATE THIS YEARBOOK TO A PIONEER IN THE ADMINISTRATION OF WISCONSIN'S LARGEST STATE UNIVERSITY, PRESIDENT OF THIS INSTITUTION FROM 1931 TO 1959 — FORREST R. POLK. FORREST R. POLK When Forrest R. Polk announced his retirement as president of Wisconsin State University-Oshkosh in 1959, and uas named President Emeritus of the school by the Board of Regents of Wisconsin State Colleges, he stepped down from a tenure of office which was the longest in any institution in the state. He had guided the school through twenty-eight years of constant change and improvement. Born at Tobinsport, Indiana, on October 12, 1888, Polk was graduated from Valparaiso College in 1909 and received a degree in engineering from Purdue University in 1914. He came to Oshkosh Normal School the following year to teach industrial arts on a campus which included two buildings and forty-five fellow instructors. After serving as an army engineer during World War I, Polk returned to Oshkosh to teach mathematics; but in the late 1920's he left to do graduate work at the University of Wisconsin in the field of geography. His thesis “The Use of the Land was never written however, for in 1931, Forrest Polk was called back to Oshkosh by the State College Board of Regents to assume the position of president of the college. With great determination, the new president met the problems of increasing enrollment and of curtailed budgets created by the Great Depression. During World War II, President Polk overcame the teacher supply shortage by arranging an accelerated teacher training program. He also established the 96th College Training detachment of the Army-Air Corps to train men to operate airplanes in combat. During President Polk's administration the number of major areas of study increased from ten to sixteen, and several minors were added. The tremendous increase in enrollment during the 1950's necessitated additional teachers and facilities. Again President Polk attacked the problem with vigor, and today’s campus reflects his work. Forrest II. Polk died on September 9, 1965. During the twenty-eight years of his administration, President Polk developed an academic standard for Wisconsin State University-Oshkosh which places this institution among the most respected colleges in Wisconsin. Forrest Polk's most distinguishing characteristic has been described as “moral and intellectual integrity—integrity in the sense of the quality of a man whose speech and mind are one, who speaks up when he knows what he will say will not be popular with some. PRESIDENT POLK: WAS THE MAINSTAY OF THE COLLEGE DURING THE DEPRESSION; MET THE TEACHER SHORTAGE WITH A SPECIAL PROGRAM DURING WORLD WAR II; ESTABLISHED 96TH ARMY AIR CORPS DETACHMENT AT THE COLLEGE DURING THE WAR; INCREASED THE NUMBER OF MAJOR AREAS OF STUDY FROM 10 TO 16; MET THE CHALLENGE OF A TERRIFIC INCREASE IN ENROLLMENT DURING THE PAST DECADE. 5

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PRESIDENT FORREST R. POLK 1888 - 1965

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ADMINISTRATION