The Telegraph-courier. [volume] (Kenosha, Wis.) 1888-1946, 1912-04-18
State Supt. Cary Keeps Up
Assault on the State
University.
TOO MUCH POST GRADUATE
Development of Specialists With
Plenty of Degrees One Of Errors in
Modern University Work Sends Let
FER to All Teachers in the State.

State Superintendent G. P. Cary is
keeping up his bombardment of the
ills of the University of Wisconsin
and this morning teachers in Kenosha
received copies of his latest letter in
regard to the university. 1t is hard
hitter against present abuses. The
letter follows:
To Teachers and the General Public:
Wisconsin is educationally top
heavy. 1t is equally true that the
state university is itself top-heavy.
Recently the president of western
state university in public address
spoke of the graduate school as con-
shutting the genuine university. RI
Our own state institution is more full
ly committed to the theory Of look
ing after the interests Of the one in
ten or fifteen who already have col
lege diploma than is any other state
institution with which / am acquaint-
ed. Such a procedure is justifable
only on the basis that the relatively
few students who have completed the
four years Of college work and are en-
rolled in the university for graduate
studies are of more Importance than
the many who are in the freshman,
sophomore, junior, and senior classes.
I do not believe such position can
be maintained by argument for a mo-
ment among intelligent people outside
college walls. The mere statement of
the conditions is sufficient refutation
of the most elaborate and wordy ar
guments in defense of such a theory.
The fact is that in large part the
shortcomings of our institution are
due to the great emphasis placed upon
this small fraction of university work,
coupled as it is with the unduly mag
nifed Importance Of the research idea.
The university Of Wisconsin is main
tanned by the people chiefly for the
sake of the boys and girls who go to
college, including the college Of en-
gineering, of agriculture, and the like,
and not for the few who continue
their studies beyond college. The
center of gravity Of state university
should be in the colleges, particularly
in the college of letters and science,
which may properly be looked upon
as the heart of the institution. Here
the most capable teachers should be
employed, especially in tho instruction
Of freshmen and sophomores.
Parents send their boys and girls
to the university to take up college
work assuming that they will have
the best possible instruction. But
with certain notable exceptions here
and there, they cannot get the best
instruction until they have been in
college at least two years. / have In
the past four or FIVE years talked with
many graduates of the university who
say that not to exceed one-half OF
the instruction they received could be
called good. The other half fell below
that standard 1t should be borne in
mind also that these students as a
rule did their utmost to select for
themselves the capable teachers.
IF you ask university authorities
why this is 50, they will tell you that
lit IS because they have not money
enough to employ strong and capable
teachers. At least that is what they
have told me. If the center of gravi-
| ty of the institution were in the col
! lege instead of the graduate school,
this condition would not exist. The
colleges would be looked after first.
and then such money, time, energy,
and teaching ability as remained for
the graduate school would be devot-
Ted to it.
| A study of the students in any
! graduate school usually reveals GER
tain rather striking facts. One>is that
goodly number Of them, say one
third, are on pay either in tie form
of fellowships OF salaries. If my
count is correct, about 126 are at this
time on the pay roll Of the university
These pupils are giving instruction OF
assisting in laboratories while carry.
ling ON their advanced studies. Elk.
cept for few rather Furnishing de
partments, the number OF graduate
students in any one subject is small
The efforts to secure these graduate
1 students are often strenuous Profes
sors frequently urge students to re-
main with them after graduation, and
efforts are made to secure students
from other colleges and universities
at the close Of fneir senior Year. They
are tempted with fellowships yielding
/ $4o0 wear. or teaching nositions