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From The Chancellor
As you know, the University of Nebraska today begins its
eighty-seventh year. It was eighty-six years ago on Feb. 15, 1869,
that the Nebraska legislature created the University.
Anniversaries are always good times to pause and consider
the future as well as the past. I suppose that is why The Ne
braskan has asked me to put dWn a few points which I consider
pertinent to the University's development during the next twenty
years.
Let me make clear at once, however, that my election to the
chancellorship has not endowed me with any supernatural powers
to peer Into the future and see this institution as it will be twenty
years hence. When it come to soothsaying, your guess is as good
as mine.
Nevertheless, I am confident that this University's growth dur
ing the next twenty years will be greater than any of us imagine
at the moment. I base my confidence on one principal, obvious
fact. That fact is that the need for the services in which the Uni
versity deals is greater than ever before and it is still growing.
An increasing number of parents want their children to have
college educations. More young people are planning on attend
ing college. And both the number of parents and the number of
children f re on the increase.
So, if you are thinking only in numerical termsi it is appar
ent that our University cannot escape physical growth. We now
can see the beginning of this physical growth: the new dormitory
for men, the new Teachers College high school, the new Nebraska
Psychiatric Institute at the College of Medicine, plus plans for the
College of Agriculture, just to name a few examples.
In my opinion, however, additions to our physical plant are
manifestations of growth. The real growth of a University must
be measured in terms of influence and service and leadership.
These, of course, are intangibles. They can't be counted like
buildings or students.
When I say that I t.-i confident that our University's growth
during the next twenty years will be greater than we imagine
how, I am saying that I believe the inflence and serivce and
leadership of this institution will be deeper and stronger and more
apparent than ever before. I am sure that the need for this growth
is great and enduring.
Certainly, there is no question but that tomorrow's student in
any of the professions medicine, engineering, law, teaching, or
any other will have more learning to do than today's student
has. But more than that, he will also have a greater need to un
derstand himself, as a human being; a greater need to understand
those about him. He will have this need because the pressures of
our own lives.
I cannot believe that the trust and confidence the people of
this state have accorded our University stems from looking at
pictures of Old University Hall. I do not believe their trust and
confidence will be materially deepened by inspecting our new
buildings. The trust and confidence that the University of Ne
braska has acquired and the deepening of them result from the
performance of our people. "Our people" includes, first, our faculty
and staff, and second, the students they serve.
Our greatest asset, our greatest hope for growth, rests with
our people. Our influence, our leadership, and our service will
come from them.
It is on this basis that I make the forecast that the University's
progress during the next twenty years will surpass our present
expectations.
CLIFFORD M. HARDIN
CHANCELLOR
Research Encouraged
Afet7 Improved kj Campus
xpected By
Robot cows, automatic egg lay
ers and completely remodeled
structures with that futuristic
trend may be a little out of the
question, but W. V. Lambert, dean
of the College of Agriculture, has
listed a few of the changes and
improvements he expects to see
h the new two decades.
One of the major changes ex
pected over the next twenty years
will be- the construction of a new
bio-chemistry building featuring
classrooms and improved chemis
try laboratory facilities for Ag
College classes. Research along
agricultural lines will also be en
couraged. According to Lambert,
the present chemistry building will
be remodeled into an office build-;
ing for administrative purposes.
A new library building can also
be expected on the Ag campus by
1975, which will house Ag College
material as well as publications
and material similar in nature to
that in Love Library, Lambert
said.
Enrollment To Increase
The present experimental build
ings for the poultry husbandry will
be dismantled and the entire poul
try research moved to the Have
lock farms where there is more
room for expansion and develop
ment along scientific lines.
Lambert said enrollment in 1975
In Ag College will be 1000 men and
500 women. Dormitories housing
350 men and 200 women can be
expected on the campus to meet
the expected rise in students.
Lambert also predicted that new
recreation facilities in the Ag Un
ion such as bowling alleys, bil
liard tables and many others will
be added by 1975.
Intramural Fields Planned
He added that intramural fields
servicing both Ag and city cam
puses will be constructed. Tennis
courts and possibly a golf course
should provide recreational facili
ties for the students of tomorrow.
He hinted that the University
livestock judgers of tomorrow will
be able to do their work in a live
stock pavilion built to, accommo
date the dispersion of University
livestock and the instruction of
students.
The Ag campus will also 'be the
center of youth activities for the
surrounding community and facili
ties for the recreational develop
ment of the youth of the country
will be constructed.
More Classroom Facilities
With increased enrollment in the
future, classrooms and laboratory
facilities must be enlarged to ac
commodate the students, he added.
Another feature in 1975 will be;
Bean timber!
increased developments in re
search, said Lambert. Students of
tomorrow, will enjoy many facili
ties and privileges that students
of today do not have the oppor
tunity to capitalize on, Lambert
said.
Four Blocks Of
fate yiniflver
By JUDY POST
Staff Writer
Attempts at higher learning in
Nebraska began before the legis
lative enactment of Feb. 15, 1869,
which created the State University.
In 1855, the territorial legislature-passed
a resolution providing
for a University at Fontenelle,
sponsored by the Congressional As
sociation of the United States. The
building burned in 1865, and was
never rebuilt.
Four years later Nebraskans
made the second attempt at es
tablishing a University. Land
grants were made by the federal
government to states for educa
tional purposes, with a time limit
on the states' acceptance. '
Governor David Butler told leg
islators in his annual address of
1869 that time was running out
and they should take advantage of
the land grant offer. .
Rumort
One building was provided for in
the following act and it was to
cost $100,000, an astronomical fig
ure for the time. Regents de
cided that a complete education
plant was necessary to meet the
needs of the future.
Rumors ran rampant in 1870,
that University Hall, the first build
ing in the University plant, was in
secure and unsafe. Professional
architects inspected the building
and declared that only minor re
pairs 'were necessary.
The University opened its doors
Sept. 6, 1871. Historian vary on
the exact number of students en
rolled. Numbers range fiom 20
to 198.
The cumpus was four blocks
square and set in the middle of
a raw and uncultivated prairie.
Citizens tethered their cows in the
school's front yard, and children
found the campus rich in wild
flowers. ,
Sioux Indians
Lincoln was a rough and hardy
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Rliaiil ...
Courtesy Lincoln Star
Hardin
Vol. 55, No. 48
Curriculums
Teachers,
A&S Plan
Changes
Several colleges are now in the
midst of changing their curricu
lum, but the most apparent changes
are coming in the Arts and Sci
ences, and Teachers Colleges.
Teaching methods that have been
"unrecognized in the past" are
now being studied, Henzlik said.
Within the next five years, Henz
lik foresees an improvement in the
standards of teaching throughout
the state. The Teachers College
plans to refine their selective ad
mission program and insist that
secondary teaching students be
come better than, average in their
major field.
Walter E. Militzer, Dean of the
College of Arts and Sciences, said
that his college would, in future
years, seek to provide a more
sound-liberal" education.
The main objective of improve
ment will be in the areas of the
English composition courses, he
said.
Physical changes are also part
of the projected plans of both col
leges. The new Teachers' High
should be completed by Sept. 1,
1955 and an addition to the main
Teachers building for special edu
cation is being planned.
Militzer said that a new Physics
building and a new bacteriology
and pharmacy building are being
planned although no contracts have
been let. These structures should
begin to take form within the next
five years.
Prairie Land
community of 1,000. The city used
well water and there was not a
sidewalk with 200 miles. Indians
roved freely in the Western part
of the state. The Sioux had not
been subdued and Custer was still
a shave-tail lieutenant.
If the Indians were a nuisance,
it could safely be said that all
was not quiet on the western
educational front eitfler. Students
in the 1870's filled the campus well
with oil, dragged a cannon from
the state capitol to the campus,
painted the roof of U Hall bright
red, rattled skeletons during convo
cations, enticed donkeys to the
third floor of U Hall and slid down
the bannisters regularly.
There were six woman graduates
in 1889, which created a problem
for The Nebraskan's predecessor,
the Hesperian. The paper spoke
politely of the feminine "gradua
tion dresses."
The Hesperian interviewed the
male portion of the graduating
but neglected the ladies. Appar
ently, women of the day were to
be allowed no ambition in a man's
world.
Sons Of Pioneers
Will Owen James, a student in
the '80's and later editor of the
Nebraska Staie Journal, described
the atmosphere at a budding col
lege in reflections.
'"The students were sons and
daughters of pioneers, fresh from
sod houses and homestead farms.
There were no sidewalks within
200 miles and the automobile was
not even a dream. It was raw
and exciting ... an unfinished
institution in an unfinished coun
try," James wrote.
Pharmacy Hall was added in 1885
and Nebraska Hall, Grant Memor
ial and the first power plant fol
lowed in 1887. i More buildings
were built and the University be
gan to assume its present plant.
The University's 10-year building
plan in effect now provides for
dharteir Pay '
SuDGDOOD
(On the eighty-sixth anniversary
of its founding, thfc University
looks ahead toward Jp75 in a pro
gram of building construction and
campus expansion.) ?
The present building and ex
pansion program at tjie University
has two more years to run, and
tentative plans are being made for
extensive building construction on
a long-range basis, John Selleck,
University comptroller, said in a
Nebraskan interview.;
The most important consideration
3
University of
Courtesy Sunday Journal and Star
Anderson
More Interest In
Doubled Enrollment Expected
In Twenty Years, Hoover Says
ip"Qie-foreseeable " future, a
quarter of a century hence, this
University will be approximately
doubled in size."
Dr. Floyd W. Hoover, director
of admissions and records, stated
in a Nebraskan interview that an
enrollment figure of 12,000 by 1975
is a conservative estimate.
The birth rate, he said, has the
most obvious effect on the enroll
ment. But, he added, the enroll
ment is increasing at a rate above
what should be expected from birth
rates alone.
National Crisis
In the event of a national crisis
such as war, Dr. Hoover empha
sized, the enrollment figure would
depend heavily on the policies of
additional changes in the campus.
Ferguson Hall and the Agronomy
Building were built in 1952, and a
new Teachers' High School is un
der construction.
Three Major Fields
The curricula of the University
in 1870 was channeled in three
major fields, the classics, sciences
and selected studies.
Freshmen took geometry, Latin,
Greek, Greek history, English and
botany. Surveying and navigation,
chemistry or history, Greek, Latin
and English made up the sopho
more load.
Third year students put their
time on Latin, physics, Greek trag
edy and literature, astronomy, and
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A Long Time Ago
Once upon a time the University downtown Lincoln about 1872, versity Hall dominating the cam
looked like this. 'Taken from the picture shows the old Uni- pus scene.
g tSDudDDKp Hup
Selleck said, is that additional fa
cilities will be needed everywhere
as enrollment increases and stu
dent activities increase. Presently,
the University is trying to build
up those areas which need addi
tional facilities, he added.
A 20-year program could include
many things. At the top of the
present building program are an
addition to the law college for ad
ditional law library facilities and
a wing on the Teachers College ad
ministration offices. It is hoped that
Nebraska
From The Governor
Every Nebraska can look with pride at the progress made
by the University during the past 86 years. Nebraska, through
all these years, has kept pace with the educational progress of
the nation.
Too much credit cannot be given for the sacrifice made by
our forefathers who in both good times and bad always provided
the necessary facilities to insure their children a good education.
It is our heritage, our opportunity and our obligation to not
only keep up the high standards which have been left our gen
eration, but we must keep up with the progress and the ever
changing conditions amid the scientific world in which we live.
It should be our purpose to use and pass on tof uture genera
tions a most modern institution of learning which is one of our best
safeguards of democracy.
VICTOR E. ANDERSON
GOVERNOR
Education
the national manpower control
board. A reduction in the Univer
sity's enrollment would be a likely
effect, he said, because of a shift
of populations.
Dr. Hoover particularly empha
sized that increased interest in
higher education is usually over
looked in speculation on future en
rollment. Technological World
He explained that an eighth
grade education was sufficient a
century ago. By the early 1920s,
a high-school education was im
perative. Now, Dr. Hoover, said,
a person cannot get along in a
technological world without train
ing. The percentage of high school
reaf
Roman literature. Juniors could
elect calculus and French, German
and English literature.
Students that survived elimina
tion to the fourth year undertook
a class schedule that included in
tellectual philosophy, geology, mor
al philosophy, history of philosophy,
history of civilization, constitutional
law, political economy and logic.
If this did not occupy the seniors,
they could elect Latin, Greek,
French, German, zoology, physical
science and aesthetics.
Locust Pest
A story is told that an examiner
for admission to the University's
preparatory school asked a pros
pective student just one question,
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55 IFuDids IMiy
construction can start on these pro
jects this summer, Selleck said.
Prominent on a long-range plan
are a new physical education build
ing for women, additional facilities
for the Dental College, a fine arts
building, a 2500-seat auditorium for
additional classroom buildings.
Plans for a new pharmacy build
ing are included in the present
program, but are not so far along
as the law library. On the same
basis as the pharmacy building are
an extension to the physics depart-
Tuesday, February 15, 1955
graduates going on to college has
increased, he said. Before 1925,
only 5 per cent continued their
education, but now the percent
age is between 30 and 35 per cent
An increase to 50 per cent and
over of high school students going
to university is to be expected by
1975, Dr. Hoover said.
Also, Dr. Hoover said, a in
creased number of junior colleges
would tend to increase enrollment
for the University.
He emphasized that the increase
of graduate enrollment will reflect
the mounting demand for people
with highly technical training who
are being relied on more and more
for technological and social ad
vances.
"Can you read?" The boy an
swered affirmatively and was im
mediately told that he had passed.
A locust pest had ruined the prair
ies for the third consecutive year
and students were hard to come
by.
"The pioneer plainsmen of Ne
braska were not content to be
absorbed only in the activities of
the present . . . we" tend to pic
ture them as leading humble and
routine lives and we forget that
they were a special breed of men,
expecially rich in' ambitions and
ideals," Dr. Louise Pound, pioneer
Nebraska writer, said in a later
description of the University's
founding.
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Courtesy Lincoln Journal
aGHSDira
ment building, and a new chemistry
building at the Ag College.
Further plans for the Ag College
hold an Ag College library a youth
center and an additional science
building.
Housing To Expand
Student housing is "bound to ex
pand," Selleck said. "The housing
program must expand rapidly. If
we were given another 500 beds
for men students, we could fill
them up by next September," he
added.
There is "quite a demand for
housing for married couples," Sel
leck said in telline how the Uni
versity of Illinois has just com
pleted a 20-story apartment buua
ing for married couples.
To help with the housing situa
tion, the University has planned two
small dorms n the Ag campus to
be started this summer. One, for
women, will house 60 students, and
the other will house 120 men.
Since the University owns the
MarqueH Apartments and the ad
joining land to the south of the
Residence Halls for women, a
southern wing is planned for the
dormitories, he said.
Temporaries To Go
As for the temporary buildings
now situated on the mall north
of the library, the administration
wing on the Teachers College
should take care of them, Selleck
explained. The Student Health Cen
ter will be moved to a new building
scheduled to be built on the new
parking lots west of the Selleck
Quadrangle.
A far-reaching plan has been es
tablished to form an "Engineer
ing Quadrangle" centering around
Ferguson Hall within 20 years, he
said. Additional engineering build
ings would take engineering activi
ties out of Bancroft Hall and cen
ter them around the west end of
the campus.
Building sites are prevalent on
the campus, he said. The mall west
chased from private owners and de
veloped, and "someday there will
be academic buildings on it," he
added.
Building Sites Available
A building site at 14th and Vine
Streets is available for the girl's
gym, and the mall now holding
the temporary buildings could be
used as sites for future classroom
buildings.
Also Available for possible build
ing sites are the areas presently
occupied by Ellen Smith Hall and
the parking lot behind the Student
Union. An addition to the Union
for more recreational and activity
facilities would extend out into this
area, making the building U
shaped Recently included in the Univer
sity's expansion plans is the es
tate left to the University to give
additional art gallery facilities. As
yet this estate has not been made
available.
r 'At
Legislative
Tiff Leads
Fo Founding
The hottest political issue In Ne
braska's legislature of 1869 was
the proposal to erect a state uni
versity. Several editors voiced the
opinion that the proposal would
not pass.
One side of the debate claimed
Nebraska should take the progres
sive view and promote culture in
Nebraska. They were the idealists
of the time, rather like Schopen
hauer. The other side claimed that the
secondary end elementary educa
tional facilities were so limited
that there would be no students for
the university, unless the legisla
tors proposed teaching the cows
that tethered on the proposed site.
Like all political issues, both
sides blustered for three weeks.
The controversy raged, with first
one side having the advantage and
then the other.
The pro-legislators called the
other side penny pinchers and the
con-legislators called the pro side
"dewy-eyed children."
History has not recorded what
was the deciding factor, but the
"dewy-eyed children won and the
resolution was unanimously passed.
This fact in itself . is practically ,
unprecedented In legislative an
nals. -
No ,one will ever know what
caused the penny-pinching side to
change its mind. Perhaps they
realized that money is not every
thing, or, more probable, they had
a vision of what the state debt
would be in 1955 and decided that
a measly $100,000 would not matter.
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