FRIDAY, DECEMBER 18, 1953 University: ; :A.ttoined . Stattis;',.:-:4o:o:ij..:.'.Agoi Although Penn State was:authoriz,ed as a university no longer than a month ago,,hiSlory shows that the school reached university / status shortly after 1908' during= the administration of Edwin Sparks, eighth president of the University. • The extraordinary growth of the .school from a primarily agri cultural college to a multi-cur ricula institution occurred during Sparks' presidency from. 1908.t0 1920 when student enrollment in creased from 1100 to over 3000 Penn State's growth has been attrfbuted to :•e - fac::::)rs. Per haps the most dominant was the institutional policy adopted by Sparks the Trustees um-- former's ,endorsement as pres ident'. " Seis Forth Aims The gray-haired, mustached president, who had accepted his nomination to the office only on the condition that no opposition presented itself, set forth his ad- ministrative aims to "secure a worthy standing for Penn State in the:State and nation and to arouse _pUblic sentiment to its advantages and needs." Sparks maintained that the scope 'character of the school should be broadened until it met "the special requirement and ap titude of every man and woman in' Pennsylvania. He said that he would expect a free hand in controlling the budget and in ,the matte± o ap pointments. On the basis of these policies he was unanimously elect ed president by the Trustees. Other Facts Encourage Rise However, the rapid rise of the school's status was not due en tirely to the efforts of Sparks and the Trustees: The •rise coincided with a period in the educational history of the, country when col leges and universities everywhere were growing 'rapidly. And con sideration must also be given to the fact that Penn State would have increased as a result of ad vances made by former adminis trations. Before the close of Sparks' ad ministration Penn State reached the proportions of a university, despite its title of college. Its affairs could no longer be man aged after the manner of a small college, so administrative changes were mad e. The creation of schools headed by deans' had been partially accomplished under George Washington Atherton, the preceding president. Sparks went farther and set up five reorganized schools—the liberal arts, agriculture, engineer ing, natural sciences, and mines— and two independent departments, home economics and industrial arts and the institute of animal nutrition. Anticipates Advances Sparks had anticipated these advances when he sought to ex tend the University's policy of broad interpretation of the Mor rill Act and to extend also the scope of instruction in, the liberal arts. He said a state-supported institution should offer courses to all classes, especially in a coun try where vocations are not likely to descend from one generation to another. Following Sparks' retirement in 1920 ; - John Martin Thomas, the ninth president of the University, proposed making Penn State a university. Thomas set forth his aims to include the development of Penn State into the Pennsyl vania State University, directly owned and controlled by the state as Pennsylvania's only state-en dowed institution of higher learn, ing. This goal, radical at that time, was announced only two weeks after Thomas took over the' presidency. • University Status Feasible In his inaugural address, he elaborated at great length. upon this goal, declaring that there was no obstacle in the school's constitution or organization to prevent it from becoming a uni versity. He cited examples of western universities that had de veloped from land-grant colleges. However, Thomas' ambitions met with. obstacles. A long-time resident of Vermont, the new EUTAW HOUSE , Potters Mills SEAFOOD DINNERS at All Times By PEGGY McCLAIN Alpha Kappa Alpha New initiates of Alpha Kappa Alpha, are Patricia Dillard, Au xea Hart, Barbara Miller, Jean ette Williams, and Myrtle Wil lams. The sorority held a brunch _lt the Dutch Pantry following _vitiation. Mrs. Robert T. Oliver, sorority adviser, recently entertained the chapter at a dinner in honor of new members. Kappa Delta Rho Kappa Delta Rho and Alpha Omicron Pi held a Christmas party for 37 children yesterday at the chapter house. New pledges of Kappa Delta Rho are Steven Fast, William Kane, and Walter Demasey. Delta Delta Delta Delta Delta Delta recently en tertained ,Alpha Sigma Phi in the McElwain recreation room. The sisters presented a skit and served refreshments. Gamma Phi Beta Sigma Chi was recently enter tained by Gamma Phi Beta in the Grange playroom. A skit was presented by the sorority pledges and dancing and refreshments fol lowed. Sigma Pi Sigma Pi recently held its an nual children's Christmas party. Sixteen children from Lemont, Linden Hall, and Woodycrest at tended the party. The boys and girls were served a Christmas meal, shown movies, and given presents by Santa Claus. Fifteen women - from Al pha Xi Delta, Alpha Chi Omega, and Delta Delta Delta assisted the brothers with the party. Acacia Acacia and Delta Zeta caroled Wednesday night at fraternities an d dormitories. Refreshments were served at the chapter house after the shis.7. _ Phi Epsilon Pi Phi Epsilon Pi ha s pledged Rodger Davidson. president was not familiar enough with Pennsylvania's complicated political situation at that time, nor did he recognize the differ ence in Pennsylvania's historical background and the 'history from which - the western universities had. emerged. With his not-so-applicable am bitions; Thomas got off to a bad start from which he never fully recovered. His prestige suffered as a result of his failure to achieve his goal. . • •Ex . pa : nsion Continued Expansion continued at Penn State in finahcial fields, in en rollment and in construction. , The school continued as a college with university proportions for the next 33 years, through the ad ministration of Ralph Dorn Het zel to the, present administration of Milton S. Eisenhower, when Penn State' was granted its long deserved recognition as a univer sity. Wayland Dunaway said in his 1946 edition of History of the Pennsylvania State College, "In asmuch .as The Pennsylvania State College has long been a university in all but name, it is only reason able that it should be so named, as some day it undoubtedly will be." Itae:mil• Tr z i7::qra:J.P47 ;4 1 , - 4 . , ' A re •‘ ._ • . 4 SALLY . 4 4' ~, Wishes You : ,-, , .14 And Your's . : s , $ A Very-Merry Christmas • 1. . t-,' THE DAILY COLLEGIAN. STATE COLLEGE. PENNSYLVANIA CO -edits Scrolls to Seek National Group Establishment Questionnaires regarding th e establishment of Scrolls, senior women's hat society, as a national hat society on campus and at other schools will be sent to col leges and universities through out the country, Gwen Griffith, president, said yesterday. The circulars will contain ques tions about whether there is a need on campuses for a national senior women's hat society and whether the- various schools want to establish one. The questionnaires are being used as an evaluation, Miss Grif fith said, to see if there is a need for a new national women's hat society. Several deans of women from small schools have written that there is such a need. If a national society is estab lished, Miss Griffith said, Scrolls will affiliate with it under its national title. Scrolls decided this week to send games and books to elemen tary grade school and junior high school girls at the Crossnore girls' school in North Carolina as a yearly project. The 'gifts will be sent to the administration of the school for distribution to indi vidual students. Anna Mae Webb, seventh se mester music education major, was appointed by' the group to study eligibility requirements for spring tapping and to decide on a date for tapping. Jane Albrecht, seventh semes ter home economics major, was appointed to the Hat Society Council project committee. Marriageo Black-Williams Miss Marilyn Williams, daugh ter of Mr. and Mrs. C. 0. Williams of State College was married to George Black, son of Mr. and Mrs. George C. Black of Mechanicsburg Nov. 25 in the Presbyterian Church in State College. The Rev. Donald W. Carruthers performed the double ring cere mony before the immediate fam ilies and close friends of the bride and bridegroom. Mrs. Black was graduated from the University in 1953 and is a recreation specialist at the Uni versity of New Hampshire. She is a member of Gamma Phi Beta. Mr. Black is a sixth semelter music education major and a member of Sigma Pi. Alpha _Gamma .Rho Alpha Gamma Rho and Gamma Phi Beta recently held a Christ mas party .for 19 children from the third "gradeof the Pine Grove Mills School. Santa Claus presented each child' with' a gift. Entertainment included games, singing, and re freshments. • ofwmt•Sfil, ,- "HOW TO MARRY A MILLIONAIRE" 1 in Cinema Scope CrlF lr t; gsaams.e.., John Payne Evelyn Keyes r'99 RIVER STREET" t. t • Robert Taylor Eleanor Parker - 'ABOVE AND BEYOND' Christmas Vacation Brings Back Woes By PEGGY McCLAIN Egad! Christmas vacation again! In pre-college days Christmas vacation was a- long-anticipated nothing-to-do-but-have-fun time. No longer! Now it's a mass re covery from a three-week blue book seige, plus (supposedly) a re search drive to finish up term papers due before Thanksgiving. From Thanksgiving until today, school days have been crammed full of all kinds of "merita,. exer cises." Not only have profs been intent on making the pre-holiday schedule a synonym for the Blue Book Era, but students have been dragging themselves over hot coals trying to compile Christmas shopping lists and giving parties for the kiddies and perhaps one or two for themselves. Coeds even have to CLEAN THEIR ROOMS before they go home! But today it's all over. Home ward! To sleep, to eat the pro verbial home cookin', and to just plain relax. Perhaps the optimistic student still has such hopes. Me- thinks he's in for disillusionment. For instance,- what about those textbooks 'crammed into suitcases . . . and the term paper outlines, and that deadly final exam sched ule? What about that stack of Christmas cards that haven't been addressed and mailed yet? And let's NOT forget that shopping list that was held over for future home reference! Christmas jobs will be a snap compared to the average Univer sity career, but pity the poor six o'clock riser that has to slush through the remains of a blizzard (White Christmas?) to work! Looks like Christmas will be all kinds of fun. Different, any way. But never let it be said that it was any vacation. So have a real cool Yule, and if thing's get too wicked . . , there are always finals in January. So be it. Belles Lettres Is Literary Organization Probably the most frequently slurred-over or mispronounced name of any campus organization is Belle Lettres. Despite the French title, mem bers of the club leave concerns of the language to Le Cer c 1 e Francais and instead dwell upon the factors of arts in today's civ ilization. Marian Swartz, president, said "belles lettres" is a term used by critics to describe literature of the highest artistic e - rceilence. The club is an informal group sponsored by the Department of English Literature but is open to any students interested in lit erature and its allied arts. Its members and officers are under graduates and its programs are undergraduate in level. Payment of dues, 50 cents per semester, is purely voluntary since all meetings are open. The small fee is designed to give the member a sense of belonging. For members in good standing there are pins made by the Balfour Co. which can be ordered through the secretary. Programs given by the club in clude lectures and discussions on topics touching literature or its relationship to other arts. Kent Forster, pipfessor of history, re cently showed slides of places visited on his last trip to Europe. Lectures, movies, discussions, and refreshments provide enter tainment for members while they "seek some culture." Wilkes College Invites Students to 'Follies' University students have been invited to attend a dance "Snow Flake Follies" by the junior class of Wilkes College, Wilkes-Barre. The dance will be held from 9 p.m. to midnight tonight in the Wilkes College gymnasium. Music will be furnished by a local orchestra and refreshments will be served. The donation is 35 cents. Early Services at Hillel The =Hillel Foundation Sabbath eve service will be held at 5:30 p.m. instead of at 8 tonight, Rab bi Benjamin Kahn announced yesterday. ;.. : li:7*. *H . ::::! : :: iit, *: _ltaa Phys Ed Honorary Elects New Officers Phi Epsilon Kappa, men's physical education honorary fra• ternity, has announced the elec. tion of new officers. They are Donald Bell, presi dent; Ralph Laudenslayer, vice president; Leo Henry, secretary; Karl Schwenzfeir, treasurer; Wil liam Anderson, historian-editor; Charles Russo, guide; and Theo dore Mortensen, sergeant - at arms. Phone Numbers Changed Officials of th e University pointed out that the telephone number for the University has been changed to 8-8441 and the' dormitories number has been changed to 8-5051. Beaver House Beaver House and Philotes sponsored a Christmas partY yes terday for the children 'of the Tusseyville School. PAGN ' M.vg
Significant historical Pennsylvania newspapers