Captains of Industry and

Erudition

Abby Moss,
Eden Driscoll, and
Sarah Looman Thomson
 What are some of today’s
“Great American Universities?”

Why are they considered “great?”

 Slosson’s Great American Universities
Harvard University Leland Stanford, Jr., University

Johns Hopkins University University of Wisconsin

Columbia University University of Pennsylvania

University of Chicago Princeton University

University of California Yale University

Cornell University University of Illinois

University of Michigan University of Minnesota

The Quest for the Great American University
★ 1880-1910
★ Standard American universities started to develop
○ Association of American Universities founded in 1900
★ American business atmosphere brought to higher ed
○ Ambition and wealth without rules
★ Titans of industry became ‘captains of erudition’
★ Religious emphasis on “good works” led to increased philanthropy by
wealthy people
○ Gifts to higher education increased 47% to 75%
Campus Architecture and the University Spirit
Structural Changes in Historical Perspective
★ Common structural /
administrative
characteristics
★ Designed according to
philosophical views or
whimsy?
★ Presidents and Donors =
University Builders
○ “Ruthless pioneers”
★ Higher ed = “the ultimate
unregulated industry”
A Profile of Campus and Community: Chicago in 1893
★ University of Chicago
○ Funded by Rockefeller and local
merchants
★ Embraced public relations
★ William Rainey Harper = new kind
of president
○ Focus on fundraising and
marketing
Large-Scale Philanthropy: Giving as the Religion
★ No federal regulations on commerce = high stakes gains
and losses
○ “Captains of Industry” that triumphed - Rockefeller, Carnegie,
Vanderbilt, Cornell, Stanford
★ These Captains gave money to schools to support scientific
and technology education before the Morrill Act (1862)
★ Financial support came from “friends” of the college
★ Civic Pride = Oprah for Colleges
★ Fund-Raisers - “Honorable Beggars”
○ Frederick Gates
■ Soliciting funds: Fishing Expeditions
■ Prospective Donors: Trout
■ About to give a lot of $$$: Big with Gift
University Presidents as Entrepreneurs
★ Presidents were called “Giants”
○ Superb fund-raisers
○ Served for a long time
○ Public figures who influenced local, state, and national affairs
○ Advanced the private sector for social & humanitarian services
★ Presidential Publicity on the College
○ Construction projects were conspicuous
○ Some Presidents did theirs quietly
■ Charles Eliot of Harvard
 What are the pros and
Discussion cons of major donors
involvement in modern
universities?
Break Time!
Characteristics of the Great Modern American University
★ Philanthropy on a Large Scale
★ Presidential Presence
★ Professors as Professional Experts
★ Pedagogy
★ Professional Schools
★ Curriculum
★ Professionalization of Students
★ Facilities
★ The Dynamics of the Academic Enterprise
Analyzing the Great American Universities
★ “Great American Universities” raised as many questions as it
answered
○ Faculty were expected to have Ph.D.s, but commitment to
doctoral programs were uneven
○ Omission/Inclusion of schools
★ Professional schools - All talk, no action
○ Creation of “learned professionals”
○ Low enrollment in classes; very few doctoral students
★ Size didn’t impact greatness
○ Some colleges had more students than others
○ Different missions
★ What are budgets?
○ Keeping up with operational budgets
○ John’s Hopkins
Land-Grant Universities: The Second Wave of Funding and
Legislation
★ 1887-1914 added more land-grant
institutions & more funding
★ New eligibility for land-grants for
black and Southern state’s colleges
★ New approach - land-grant
institutions focussed on applied
research = legitimized their role in
everyday life of local community
(ex. Farmers brought fertilizer to
Kentucky state colleges for quality
control checks)
The Academic Kitchen: Women as University Scholars
★ Great Midwest/West
universities = commitment to
coeducation
★ BUT (1) women “pigeonholed”
in academic/social life (2)
female graduates - trouble in
academic job market (3) if
faculty, then marginalized &
w/o tenure & low salary
★ THEREFORE women (1) looked
for other jobs (2) mentored
other women “protegee chains”
Vertical History to Horizontal History: The Great Foundations
★ Philanthropic donations to higher ed shifted from
building institutions to establishing institutes for a
specific area of study
★ “Foundation Directors” usually had different ideas
regarding purpose/structure of institutes than the
benefactors
Heroic Chaos to Coordination and Standards
★ Concerns over quality in higher ed
★ Creation of standardized
admissions tests
★ Ratings, rankings, & reputations
★ Foundations dictated curriculum
be free of denomination
★ Abraham Flexner - 1910 analysis
on U.S. medical education
exposed reform problems to
general public
★ = PROGRESSIVISM
Conclusion
★ University building in the South - overlooked by
researchers
★ Institutions 1890-1910 = fluid, uncertain, and
diverse
★ Institutions added many new fields of study
★ Freestanding professional schools decreased
★ No government funding, but no interference;
“The American
allowed for innovation
University of 1910 was
★ Foundations & accrediting groups created an adolescent - gangly,
standardization practices energetic, and
★ Growth created need for academic bureaucracy enigmatic.”
 If you had your own
university...
★ What do you think would be the top
5 characteristics to focus on (from
previous list) to make yours a

ACTIVITY! ★
“great” American university?
Expand on what those 5
characteristics would look like at
your university and how they would
help make your university “great.”
★ How would you seek out funding
for your university?