Western Michigan University - Brown and Gold Yearbook (Kalamazoo, MI)

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RETROSPECT With the publication of the present volume, the Brown and Gold launches into the second decade of its existence. Let us reflect for a moment, as we turn these pages, over the debt that we of the present owe to the pioneers who were responsible for the first annual published in this school, and to those who in succeeding years have contributed to its growth and betterment. We light our candles by their torches. It was their effort and their sacrifice that made this book possible: it is to their spirit as incorporated in the pro- gress for which they were responsible that we owe what we today enjoy. The same spirit that has been manifested in the development of the Brown and Gold has shown itself in the life of the school as a whole. It has been scarcely seventeen years since Western State Normal was founded, yet in that short space of time it has grown in numbers and developed in influence until today it is universally recognized as one of the greatest Normal schools of the nation. its life has been brief indeed when compared with the lives of other institutions, and when considered in the light of the years of struggle which have been necessary to bring Education to the fore. This school has no time-worn traditions to hold it to the pathsgand customs of former days, nor does it depend upon the deeds and accomplishments of bygone genera- tions for its standing in the present. It is what it is, not what it was, that makes Western Normal great. Democracy and progress are' its traditions. and the determination to make advancement, to utilize the past only as a means of making better the future, is responsible for its rapid development. The past year has been one of exceptional importance for Western State Normal. Never has the spirit of progress and democracy been more domin- ant, nor has there been a year in the school's history more productive of val- uable results. A record breaking enrollment-completion of the new Man- ual Arts building-these are representative of the material advances that have been made. Equally significant has been the spirit, the initiative, and the loyalty shown by the student body. It has assumed definite responsibilities, and with genuine enthusiasm and co-operation has supported every activity and movement which has been for the best interests of the school. Thus the record of the past and present augurs well for the future. The field of possibilities is broad and worth-while. Education must keep pace with world development, and it is the privilege of Western State Normal to be identified with the struggle to gain equal educational opportunities for all. May the spirit that has in the past bound teachers and students together in zealous striving for the best things ever continue to function: may the spirit of progress-dominant on the part of our school-abide with it through all the coming years. 11

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PRESIDENT DVVIGHT B. WALDO, A.. M., LL. D 10

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'A FAIR EXTERIOR IS A SILENT RECOMMENDATION