It has been more than 100 years since WSU first opened its doors to students. This was a time when tuition was free, a year’s worth of text books cost a whopping $15, and the university was known as the Washington Agriculture College and School of Science.
Lawrence Stark, WSU archivist, said the first couple of years saw two different presidents. Both George Lilly and John Heston tried to organize the school but each only served a short time.
In 1892, course subjects were scattered and unorganized. They ranged from agriculture, mechanic arts and engineering, to sciences and arts.
According to the 1893-1894 course catalog, the only degree programs available were in general science, agriculture, civil engineering and mechanical engineering, with a focus in either electrical, hydraulic or steam engineering.
Classroom studies essentially were the same for a student’s first three years and not until the senior year did students practice technical skills.
In 1893, the general science degree encompassed everything from mathematics, modern languages, botany, zoology and more. The idea was to prepare people for a wide range of job opportunities. The agriculture degree prepared students for a life of modern agriculture. Students took courses in farm plant life, methods of irrigation, use and care of machinery, forestry and entomology.
Bryan brings change
During the 1893-1894 school year, Enoch Bryan was appointed as president and made big changes to the university system, according to the book “Creating the People’s University: Washington State University, 1890-1990.”
Stark said when Bryan came in as the third president, he thought more in terms of departments and degree requirements. Bryan tightly organized classes and enlarged departments. These changes largely influenced the way the university is organized now, Stark said.
Departments were organized with special courses of instruction offered for each degree. The college was organized into nine departments with degrees available in mathematics and civil engineering, chemistry, botany and zoology, agriculture, horticulture, language and literature, economic science and history, mechanical engineering, and military science and tactics.
“Generally the system has been the same since Bryan,” Stark said. “The basic design hasn’t changed, even though hundreds of details have.”
Tracing the changes in departments and degrees is not an easy task because there have been department name changes and re-organizations over the years, he said.
Specialization
According to the course catalog, it was during Bryan’s term that the idea of majors and minors began. Bryan’s ideology was, “it is better to know one thing thoroughly than to have a smattering of a great many things.”
One program that was available in 1893 but is no longer around today is mining engineering. Students made visits to nearby mines and smelters and often spent summer vacations surveying mines.
Another degree that is no longer available is domestic economy, more commonly known as home economics. In 1904-05, domestic economy became available for women and the dining room and kitchen of the dormitory served as a “laboratory.”
Some of the changes that Bryan made are still around today, according to “Creating the People’s University: Washington State University, 1890-1990.” Not only has the structure remained the same, but Bryan also required every student to pass two years of foreign language, one year of English, and one year of math.
Switching models
The transition in WSU’s education model that occurred with President Bryan is described by Lawrence Stark as a shift from the “academy model” to the “German or Humboldt model.”
The academy model, seen in American colleges in the 19th century, involved courses of study, which were somewhat like majors or programs. Bryan introduced the German model, the familiar pattern of subject-organized departments, majors, minors and electives. This is how most American universities have been organized since the late 19th century.
The transition at WSU (then WAC) took a few years as the courses of study method was phased out. The two approaches are not totally exclusionary of each other, Stark said.
