As agriculture students at Oklahoma State University, it is very important to understand the history behind the establishment of our institution. Attending a land-grant university is certainly unique, but what does it mean? This paper will discuss the legislative acts that organized our university, as well as other agriculture and mechanic schools across the United States.
During the 1800s our country was experiencing a significant push for progress and innovation. Businesses were booming as a result of the Industrial Revolution, and the nation was facing the struggles that come with racial controversy. The need for education was considerable; however, higher education was limited to only prestige individuals. Moreover, the only colleges were either private or faith-based, making it even more difficult for working class citizens to be admitted. Justin Smith Morrill, a Republican legislator from Vermont, recognized this demand and initiated a plan to increase accessibility to advanced curriculum. Morrill pushed the idea to organize public institutions that offered agriculture and mechanic education and training. His emphasis on more practical skills instead of the arts was faced with much opposition. Angered legislators feared that creating A&M colleges would deplete the budget and jeopardize the integrity of established universities. They also expressed their view that the government should not make decisions regarding higher education. Among those who resisted Morrill’s proposal was President James Buchanan, who vetoed Morrill’s original plans in 1857. Fortunately, Justin Morrill would gain another supporter during the following presidential election.
After learning of Morrill’s radical ideas for education, Abraham ...
... middle of paper ...
...amson. A Century of Service: Land-Grant Colleges and Universities, 1890-1990. New Brunswick, NJ: Transaction Publishers, 1991. Web. 4 Mar. 2014.
Craig, Lee A. "Title Raising among Themselves”: Black Educational Advancement and the Morrill Act of 1890." Agriculture and Human Values 9.1 (1992): 31-37. Web. 4 Mar. 2014.
Cross, Coy F. Justin Smith Morrill: Father of Land-Grant Universities. East Lansing, Mich.: Michigan State University, 1999. Web. 4 Mar. 2014
Edmond, J.B. The Magnificent Charter: The Origin and Role of the Morrill Land-Grant Colleges and Universities. Hicksville, N.Y.: Exposition Press, 1978. Web. 4 Mar. 2014.
Morrill, Justin Smith. "Morrill Act of 1862." Social Policy: Essential Primary Sources. Ed. K. Lee Lerner, Brenda Wilmoth Lerner, and Adrienne Wilmoth Lerner. Detroit: Gale, 2006. 97-99. Gale Virtual Reference Library. Web. 4 Mar. 2014.
During the early 1800s, two parties were developed having different perspectives on government and the Constitution. The Democratic Republicans, led by Thomas Jefferson and James Madison, were always characterized by following the strict construction of the constitution. The Federalists, led by Alexander Hamilton, were characterized by following the broad construction of the constitution. The presidencies of Jefferson and Madison proved this characterization to be somewhat accurate. Although the Democratic Republicans and the Federalists did support their own ideas and views, they also did many things that contradicted them.
In the year of 1862, Abraham Lincoln signed the Morrill Land Grant Act providing funds for the creation of land-grant schools in each state in the United States of America. Specifically, this act gave each state “30,000 acres…to establish a college that would promote education in agriculture, mechanics, classical studies and military tactics” (Morrill Act). The act provided each state with government funds to purchase the land, but the state itself was required to find the capital to erect the buildings. The Morrill Act was initially introduced to President Buchanan, but he vetoed it based on his belief that it was “financially draining for the Treasury, a threat to existing colleges, and unconstitutional” (Morrill, J.). On the second occasion
When a person presently looks at university school systems, one never imagines the struggle to obtain such diverse campuses. With Caucasians, Asians, Latinos, and African Americans all willing and able to attend any institution, it is difficult now to envision a world where, because of one’s skin color, a person is denied university acceptance. In actuality, this world existed only fifty years ago. In a time of extreme racial discrimination, African Americans fought and struggled toward one of many goals: to integrate schools. As a pioneer in the South, a man named James Meredith took a courageous step by applying to the University of Mississippi, an all white university. After overcoming many legal and social obstacles, the University of Mississippi’s integration sent positive effects rippling among universities across the nation.
While some citizens of the United States, between 1825 and 1850, believed that reform was foolish and that the nation should stick to its old conduct, reformists in this time period still sought to make the United States a more ideally democratic nation. This was an age of nationalism and pride, and where there was pride in one’s country, there was the aspiration to improve one’s country even further. Many new reformist and abolitionist groups began to form, all attempting to change aspects of the United States that the respective groups thought to be unfair or unjust. Some groups, such as lower and middle class women and immigrants, sought to improve rights within the county, while other reformers aspired to change the American education system into a more efficient way of teaching the county’s youth. Still other reform groups, particularly involved in the church and the second great awakening, wanted to change society as a whole. This was a time and age of change, and all these reforms were intended to contribute to the democratic way our country operated.
In the eyes of the early American colonists and the founders of the Constitution, the United States was to represent the ideals of acceptance and tolerance to those of all walks of life. When the immigration rush began in the mid-1800's, America proved to be everything but that. The millions of immigrants would soon realize the meaning of hardship and rejection as newcomers, as they attempted to assimilate into American culture. For countless immigrants, the struggle to arrive in America was rivaled only by the struggle to gain acceptance among the existing American population.
In the early 1600s, America was given the opportunity of higher education. As decades flew by universities grew and flourished to a point where it’s no longer a struggle to be admitted into a university, and it’s also more accessible to pay for, such as student loans, federal loans, scholarships and grants (Kirszner). Since attending university has become an essential to most high school graduates, universities have welcomed larger classes. A common argumentative debate when it comes to college is whether every American should attend. An example of someone who believes college is only for a handful of individuals is Charles Murray. Murray wrote, “What’s Wrong with Vocational School?” an article published in 2007 for the Wall Street
From 1860 to 1877, the American people faced several constitutional and social issues. For example, the after-effects of the Civil War, power struggle between the state and federal government, issues with civil liberties and suffrage, the rights of free black men, and resentment of white men, have all become critical issues. These critical issues needed immediate resolutions. Therefore, resolutions were created to solve these problems and those resolutions called for new constitutional and social developments that have amount to a revolution.
According to the National Center for Education Statistics, some 20.5 million students are expected to attend American colleges and universities, constituting an increase of about 5.2 million since fall 2000. In addition to this increase of incoming college students, the constant question of “why” does as well. You have one side that says yes! They believe that college is the answer to America’s problems, while the other hand, says that college is not necessarily the answer. Although both of these sides seem to be on the opposite spectrum of everything; they both agree on a few common themes. One being that they both desire for America to be greater and that the quality of everyone 's lives to be the best they can possibly be.
The funding of public education has long been an issue for the state government of Texas. Starting before Texas was even a state, public education funding was at the forefront of politicians’ minds. In 1836, one of the reasons Anglo-Texans wanted to become independent from Mexico was Mexico’s lack of a public school system (An Overview of the History of Public Education in Texas, 2016). This drove the desire of President Mirabeau B. Lamar of the Republic of Texas to create legislation that would grant public schools land (A Brief History of Public Education, n.d.). This act set aside four leagues of land per county for the use of free education centers and thus began the funding of public education by the state government (An Overview of the History of Public Education in Texas, 2016). In the last 177 years, the Texas Legislature and the Texas Education Agency have created numerous acts and laws regarding the funding of education, but it has been in the last 50 years that this topic has become highly contested, resulting in several lawsuits and endless efforts (by the school districts) to equalize the distribution of funds to Texas school districts (Texas School Finance History, n.d.). In sum, the complex issues and policies that surround the funding of public education are derived from a combination of the legislature, bureaucratic agencies, and local governments in the form of school districts.
In 1919, farmers from thirty states, including Missouri, saw a need. They gathered in Chicago and formed the American Farm Bureau Federation. In 1919, they had one goal, they wanted to speak for themselves with the help of their own national organization. Since 1919, Farm Bureau has operated by a philosophy that states: “analyze the problem of farmers and develop a plan of action for these problems” (Missouri). In the past 94 years, the A...
... Conference.” Reader’s Companion to American History. Houghton Mifflin Company, 1991. Online. Internet. Available at HTTP: http://www.historychannel.com/. 23 Sept 2001.
... through the years after the Great Depression the Unites States staked a claim in the educational advancement of its citizenship in order to build a strong economy. However, unlike years past, public ownership and support of higher education has decreased in the face of growing inflation and the nations changing economy.
Brown II, M. C., & Ricard, R. B. (2007). The honorable past and uncertain future of the nation’s HBCUs. Thought & Action, 117.
The Morril Act established Land Grants that helped finance the monetary funds and land to establish the school as the Agricultural College of Oregon. In 1870, the first Bachelors were awarded to two men and a woman known as Alice Biddle, J.K.P. Currin, and Robert M. Veatch (Beach et al., 2008). The 1870’s and 1880’s, marked a time of growing faculty and staff for the institution. A new administration building, that still stands today, was established known as Benton Hall where many classes took place. This marked the move of the campus to the northern part of Corvallis (Beach et al., 2008) where it sits today.
Leading up to the end of the 1800’s, agricultural was losing its place as the largest economy in the United States. Farmers felt that they were under-appreciated and taken advantage of, even though they produced food to be distributed nationwide. Although agriculture was imperative to the survival of the nation, farmers faced devastating natural causes, outrageously high rates on land and transportation, and unsuccessful tries in politics.