Worcester Polytechnic Institute

Seventy Years

its case and upon how successful the endowment committee should be in attaining the rest of the goal.

This committee, headed by Major Victor E. Edwards, '83, held a preliminary meeting a few days after the joint sessions on the campus. Three decisions were made: that the amount to be raised would be prorated according to the geographical distribution of alumni, that all money should be payable by July, 1922, and that necessary expenses should come out of cash contributions. The organization was perfected at a New York meeting, November 7, 1919. At this time, Clifton H. Dwinnell, '94, was elected permanent chairman, and Arthur D. Butterfield, clerk. Colonel Butterfield was to be given leave of absence in order that he might give all his time to the work of the campaign.

Assignments of special projects were made to various subcommittees. Dr. Hollis accepted the responsibility of presenting the case to the General Education Board. R. Sanford Riley, '96, was chairman of a special committee to seek aid from industries. The executive committee, Paul B. Morgan, '90, chairman, Mr. Edwards, Mr. Rockwood, Aldus C. Higgins, '93, and E. Howard Reed, '02, was also given charge of promotional activities and publicity. Local committees were to be organized in each alumni district. The campaign was to be short and intensive, March 1, 1920, having been set as the closing date. There were scarcely four months available for organization, publicity and solicitation.

An unique unit of college financing, the sustaining scholarship, was devised early in the campaign. It was designed particularly to interest industrial directors by furnishing them a tangible object for corporation gifts. Each unit of

$10,000 gave the company the privilege of naming an employee or son of an employee to receive free tuition at the Institute. The normal income on this unit of endowment would be adequate to cover about the average annual cost of a student's education. This plan, sponsored by Mr. Riley's committee, was placed before about forty leading

       296       

[WPI] [Library] [Contents] [Back] [Forward]

webmaster@wpi.edu
Last Modified: Fri Jul 30 11:15:25 EDT 1999