The Birmingham age-herald., 1924-05-25
STATE COLLEGES
 FACED BY CRISIS
 SAYS DR. DENNY
University Now Has 2,2OO Students Compared
 With 400 Tn 1912
POINTS OUT NEED
 ENLARGED FUNDS
President In Annual Re- port To Trustees Em-
 phasibes Problem

UNIVERSITY, Ala, May 24.- Especial. .)-Higher education in Ala bama faces crisis due to failure of the state to provide adequate funds for the university and colleges, according to the annual report of Dr. George H. Denny, which will be submitted to the board of trustees tomorrow. He points out the amazing increase in the num- Der of high school graduates since the war and the consequent overflowing of the colleges.
 Dr. Denny points out that the state university now has 2,200 students en- rolled at the regular term compared with only 400 in 1912. "The institu- tIon, he says, is carrying heavier load than any state university south of Washington. with the exception of Texas. The University of Virginia, | which decade ago was three times as l large now has less, students than Aia- bama, his report shows.
 His plea that the state abandon q penny wise and pound foolish' idea toward its educational institutions is included in the following report:
 To the Board of Trustees of the Uni versity of Alabama:
 Gentlemen:
 II am taking the liberty of depart- ing somewhat from the more or less sterotyped form of the reports submit. ted to you during the past twelve years. My apology for this procedure lies in the fact that there are in my Judgment certain outstanding things that need to be stressed.
 |
 crisis that demands the patriotic and energetic consideration of every for overlooking citizen. Following the | World war there has been an amazing increase in the output of our high schools from which approximately so | per cent Of our students come The number of graduates has quadrupled. There is unmistagable evidence on the part of Alabama parents of a deter imitation to make every sacrifice in the matter of educating their children. Ap- parently no sacrifice has been or is too great. They properly regard education as an investment, and not an expendi- ture. They correctly believe that the richest legacy they can leave their chill dren is sound college education, if they can afford it. In voting the mill age tax for local county and district
 
 manifest. The public schools are crowded. The colleges are overflow ing. The one unifying demand in Ala bama other than good roads is the de- mand for education, overshadOwing all differences of politics. religion or pros perity. Parents will not indefinitely tolerate the inability of institutions to provide instruction adequate to meet the needs of all high school graduates who can satisfy the requirements of these institutions. They will repudiate any policy that denies to large mem- bers of worthy students admission to college.
 400 To 2.2OO
 My reference to my first report, submitted in 1912, I find that there were less than 400 students enrolled in our regular session. Today there are approximately 2,200. Including summer school and extension, and ex- cluding all duplicates, the number for the year is grand total of 5,00S. No ! intelligent man will claim that the state has remotely met this situation. These students come from our own homes.. It is interesting to note that there are this year from the farms of Alabama more students at the Univer- | sity of Alabama than at any institution in the south, north of Texas, if avail able statistics are trustworthy. Will anyone say that these boys and girls from our rural homes should be denied admission? Are we ready to turn them away on the ground that the state [ is unable or unwilling to provide facili- ties adequate for the instruction, for | (COntinued on Page Eightl