Tarleton Thursdays: Edna Wolfe's Academic Record

A couple months ago, we received some items belonging to 1925-26 Tarleton student Edna Myrtle Wolfe Blue (1906-2001, picture at right is from the 1926 Grassburr).  They were donated by her grandson Shawn Blue.  Shawn asked if there were any academic records available for his grandmother, and the Registar's office was able to locate them.  Shawn gave us permission to post the images in our library blog, saying, "Don't blank out the grades. She owned everything she ever did good or bad. A very transparent and honest person. She would challenge everybody who sees the post to do better than she did in her coursework."

The first page of the record gives basic information about Edna (and her father), and indicates the credits she earned in high school in Hico, Texas.  According to the April 15, 1925, Bulletin of the John Tarleton Agricultural College, page 36, a student needed 15 units of credits to be admitted to the Junior class.  Edna had 13, including the required two units in English and three in mathematics (two in algebra and one in plane geometery), so she was admitted to the Sophomore class--or at least, that's how it looks from this first page of her record.

However, apparently because Edna already had the required additional English credit to be placed in the Junior class, it appears from the second page of her record that she was allowed to take courses as a Junior. 

Below is an enlargement of the lower half of the page above (click on the photos to enlarge them further).  Note that Sp. 301 and Sp. 302 courses taken in the first and second semesters of the 1925-26 session have "H. S." written after them, and not any number for credits awarded.  My guess is that Edna took these courses to acquire the two additional credits she needed for Junior status.  These courses are described in the April 15, 1925, Bulletin (page 113) as "Beginners' Spanish for Juniors...Grammar; easy readings; simple themes; conversation.  Part of class work will be conducted in Spanish."

Finally, here is a further enlargement of Edna's first semester at Tarleton:

Besides the previously mentioned Spanish class, here are descriptions of the other courses she took, from the April 15, 1925, Bulletin:

Clo. 311 is the first semester of Clothing and Textiles (p. 98), which "embraces the same principles as that of clothing 301...but is designed especially to meet the needs of students who are high school graduates but who have done no credit work in clothing.  Clothing 301 (p. 97) "consists of principles of sewing and garment making, with a study of the history, production, manufacture, properties, and use of the textile fibers, with the hygiene and care of clothing.  The principles of dress design are studied and applied to problems."

Ed. 309 is the first semester of Methods of Teaching the Elementary School Subjects (p. 87), which "is required for the Elementary [teaching] Certificate.  Concrete demonstrations of the standard methods of teaching the elementary school subjects.  The laws of psychology, as applied to classroom instruction will be illustrated by the presentation of subject matter, lectures, readings, observations, and reports.  The organization of the subject matter in the lesson to show the more important from the lesser value.  Writing model lessons.  The proper methods of drill. The relation of the teacher to the pupils, principal, superintendent, parents, and the community."

E .301 is [English] Composition (p. 88).  "The aim of this course is to promote clearness and correctness of expression through practice in the simpler forms of composition.  Suitable types of literature will be studied."

Fo. 311 is Principles of Cooking and Nutrition (p. 99).  "This course embraces the study of foods as covered by 301...but is designed especially to meet the needs of those students who are graduates of a high school and have done no credit work in foods."  Food 301 (p. 98) covers "the fundamental principles and processes of cooking....It takes up food composition and nutritive values together with practice in food cookery.  In the latter part of the course instructions will be given in menu making and the problem of feeding the family."

Des. 301 is Design (p. 99). "This is a course in design for Home Economics students.  Line, dark and light, and color are taught.  Some of the processes are wool and silk embroidery, enamel work, sealing wax, tying and dyeing, stenciling, block printing, etc."

Mus. 311 is Music Appreciation (p. 94).  "This course is designed to meet the need of the Home Economics Department and all students who are seeking the cultural influence of music.  It will include lectures, theoretical study, round table discussions, outside preparation, parallel reading, and the art of listening and analysis.  Victrola records, recitals, and radio programs will be a strong feature of this course.... It is...a required subject in the Home Economics Department."

P.T. 301 is Physical Training [for women] (p. 117).  "This course consists of free-standing exercises, calisthenics, wands, Indian club and dumb-bell exercises (first series), and gymnastic games."

The five courses marked with an X enabled Edna to obtain a four-year elementary certificate, according to the section on page 29 of the April 15, 1925, Bulletin:

On the completion at Tarleton of five college courses of junior or senior rank a student may secure a four-year elementary certificate of the first class, provided one of these courses is in the department of English and one in the department of education, if...[it]...bears on elementary education.  This certificate is good for grades one to seven, inclusive, in any of the schools in the State.

Edna came back to Tarleton in the summers of 1928, 1929, and 1930, and took ten additional courses to earn her four-year high school teaching certificate.  According to page 34 of the February 15, 1928, Bulletin, 

...on the completion of ten college courses of junior or senior rank a student may secure a four-year high school certificate of the first class, provided one of these courses is in the department of  English and two are in the department of education, if one of the courses in education bears on high school subjects.  This certificate is good for any of the grades and for any of the high school subjects in any of the schools of the State.

Edna's record also indicates that transcripts were sent to NTSTC (North Texas State Teachers College, now the University of North Texas) in June 1942, and to the County Superintendent [of schools] in Hamilton, Texas, in October 1943.

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Tarleton Thursday: Edna Wolfe's 1925 "Purple Book"

        On February 8, 2016, Shawn Blue of Waco kindly donated his grandmother's 1926 Grassburr, a leather book strap with a "Tarleton" buckle, and a 1925 "Purple Book." It was very fitting that he donated these precious items during Library Lovers Month. In last week's Tarleton Thursday blog post, Amanda discussed Edna Wolfe's (1906-2001) academic record, as it was an interest of her grandson. Today, we are going to take a look at the 55-page September 1, 1925 "Purple Book."

The"Purple Book" was established in 1917 as a student handbook and was in publication for 25 years. The book let students know what was expected of them while they were on Tarleton's campus: boys and girls dormitory regulations; academic regulations; and rules concerning discipline. 
 

Edna lived in the only girls dorm on campus called "The Dump." She and her roommates were called the "Dumplings" (JTAC 1925 Vol. 6, No. 4). Girls Dormitory Regulations were so important that in the back of Edna's "Purple Book" were two loose pages from another "Purple Book." These were the two pages on Girls Dormitory Regulations with a handwritten note at the top "To have and to hold." 


Of particular interest are the library regulations. Library rules/regulations can be found on page 13 through page 14. You'll notice that the first point made (44. a.) is that "the Library shall be open in accordance with a schedule approved by the Dean." In 1925, the library was "open from 7:40 a.m. until 6:00 p.m. every week day except Saturday, when it closes at 3:00 p.m. It was closed on Sundays and holidays" (1924-25 John Tarleton Agricultural College Catalogue, p. 23). I'd say being open until 2:00 a.m. is a huge difference from then to now. 

Another interesting rule is 44. e. In 1925, students could only check out "one book of fiction and one other book" for a two week period. Today, students can checkout 20 items at a time, most for 28 days. You'll notice that there is a "five cents per day fine for all books kept over time." Today, it's a mere ten cents per day fine for all items kept over time. To put that into perspective, five cents then would be the equivalent of 68 cents today. You could also purchase a bottle of Coca-Cola for five cents in 1925, as opposed to a $1 a can today.

At that time, the library was located in two rooms of the Administration Building and there was only one librarian. Today, we have a three floor building all to ourselves on the Stephenville campus, plus Texan Hall at the Fort Worth campus, and a total of 14 librarians. One of the most important rules then still applies today: YOU MUST PAY ALL FINES PROMPTLY IF YOU WISH TO MAINTAIN GOOD STANDING IN THE COLLEGE.