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YEARS OF ACTION AND CHANGE ♦ % % » • ♦•♦•••••% ••••• The following is description, history, definition, criticism, and opinion. It is provided to entertain, amuse, inform, and hopefully to inspire some serious thought. The tastes and attitudes of Richmond Professional Institute are many, from the strictest conservative to the most liberal; both live together on campus. This work is in- tended to be captured attitudes, of interest to all who take time to read, think, comprehend, and most of all act. Brick, mortar, pavement, and the ever present cobble- stones -these are the campus of RPI. A campus created out of the city. At first glance RPI does not look like a college. To those who have no direct contact with the institution, RPI seems to be swallowed by the city. To those who go there it is an experience, a memory, a vital part of their lives. The buildings with their cold exteriors hide the true life of the school. They are a barrier to the world outside; this barrier has been a help and a hindrance. The stone faces of the structures hide the flesh faces of the stu- dents; the faces that have many different attitudes, shapes, and appearances. Much like a coconut, the meat and heart of the college is hidden from first inspection by an extremely hard shell. Like the coconut, once this shell is broken, the meat and the heart are revealed. There are over 10,000 students now attending RPI, each with a different background, ambition, and appear- ance. The growth of RPI has been rapid and steady; each year brings more people who are willing to break the shell. At this point a look at the past may be informative. From the inception of the college by Dr. Henry H. Hibbs, to the present day and hopefully the future, RPI has been moving rapidly forward. The first classes of the school that was to become RPI were held on the third floor of No. 1112 Capitol Street in 1917. At that time there was only one school, the School of Social Work and Public Health. This school was the first of its kind in the entire South. Within the first three years from the Octo- ber 1 1 starting day, a program in recreational leader- ship and extension courses from the College of William and Mary were available. It was in this period too that the Dramatic Art Department was started. The school moved to 827 West Franklin (Founder ' s Hall) in 1925 and the School of Social Work and Public Health became the Richmond Division of the College of William and Mary (the first branch college in Virginia). In 1937, a depart- ment to train teachers in distributive education was formed. This was the first such program offered by any college in the United States. Richmond Professional Institute of the College of William and Mary was the name adopted by this school in 1939. The name was aptly chosen to point out the emphasis on training for professional fields. In 1962, of the Col- lege of William and Mary was dropped when the college was accredited on its own merits by the Southern Asso- ciation of Colleges and Schools. The year 1959 marked the retirement of Dr. Hibbs after 42 years of service. Dr. Hibbs will never leave the school entirely, for a debt is owed him by all. In this year. Dr. George Oliver ably took up the responsibility of running what had become a rapidly growing urban college. Although RPI received its accreditation in 1953, the name was officially changed by an act of the General Assembly in 1962, at which time RPI became an inde- pendent state-supported college. Upon Dr. Oliver ' s retirement in 1967, Dr. Roland H. Nelson, Jr., became president of the greatly expanded college. Although Dr. Nelson has not held his post long, he has shown that he is a man who not only wants results, but also one who expects results. RPI ' s history is a history of growth. Much like any ex- panding thing, the college has felt growing pains. The growth and size of the school are the fountainheads of the many problems that face RPI. By 1970, the total enrollment prediction reaches nearly 19,000 students. This terrific increase is due to the geographic location of the school, the atmosphere of the campus, and the courses of study offered, among other things. Richmond ' s location in the population cres- cent of Virginia, which extends from Washington, D. O. to Richmond, and south to Norfolk, makes it a leading city in the state for industry and retail business. RPI, situated in the center of this large area, was fated from the beginning to be large. The urban campus en- courages attendance by those who would not other- wise have the opportunity for higher education. RPI per- mits many students to live at home and work part-time in the various businesses of the city. The urban campus has many problems, one of which is the lack of space. The school has been growing steadily, but the avail- ability of land has decreased. RPI has been forced to go in the only direction left-up. The extension to the Hibbs building was constructed to facilitate the addition of four more floors. The buildings and faculty of RPI are both overtaxed. Another of the problems of the college is the lack of strong support of the school by the State Legislature in years past. Now the attitude is beginning to change; the city ' s, and pos- sibly the state ' s, largest college cannot be ignored. RPI is a rapidly changing school; and with each change, the reputation of the school is boosted. RPI is not a school afraid to change. The strange, the new, and the different are not rejected, but are embraced with the hope that something can be learned by each unique experience. This attitude of open-mindedness has not always been looked upon with favor. At times, RPI has seemed to be a life independent of the city of Richmond, yet dependent on the city for its life. The problems of an urban college (soon to be a part of a university system) are complex. The school h as not been a parasite on the city. RPI has added a greatly needed number of trained workers to the labor market of Rich- mond and other cities. While attending school, many students work, again adding to the work force and bol- stering the economy of the city. The art department of
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