A Century of Graduate Education

Introduction:

To celebrate the centennial of graduate education, we present this exhibit drawn from the collections of Manuscripts, Archives, and Special Collections (MASC), at the Washington State University Libraries. Though the Washington Agricultural College and School of Science (the first name of Washington State University used until 1905) granted honorary graduate degrees to accomplished citizens, it was not until 1902 that the first official master’s degree was awarded to William Hurford Lawrence. In 1929, LaVerne Almon Barnes completed the first PhD at Washington State University slightly ahead of Frederick James Stevenson, who also filed in 1929. It is our hope to provide through this exhibit a sense of the campus that Lawrence and Barnes experienced when they pursued their graduate studies and a selection of the earliest documents created by the Graduate School of Education.

First MA Thesis at Washington State University:

W. H. Lawrence, for his MA Thesis in Botany, "The Black Knot of the Choke Cherry "

W. H. Lawrence born on February 3, 1877 at Lake City, Iowa, moved to South Dakota in the early 1880s. He entered the South Dakota Agricultural College in 1895 and graduated with a B.S. in 1899. He served in the First Dakota National Guard, where he reached the rank of First Lieutenant and later Major of the Cadet Battalion at the South Dakota Agricultural College. Lawrence held a variety of jobs as a student. He worked as a Botany assistant, painter, contractor, and a bookkeeper for a Mill Company. Lawrence entered the Washington Agricultural College and School of Science (WAC) in 1900. He joined the 1902 track team, served as Captain of the 1902 football team, became the President of the Columbia Literary Society, and worked at the Puyallup Experiment Station during his summer vacation in 1901. After earning his Master’s (the first graduate degree awarded at WAC), Lawrence joined the WAC Biology faculty. Cf page 39 Chinook 1903

First PhD Student At Washington State University:

LaVerne Almon Barnes, awarded for his dissertation "Studies in Local Immunity."

LaVerne Almon Barnes grew up in the Spokane Valley. According to his daughter Janet Prochazka, in an interview with Robert Frank for WSU Today, due to his family’s poverty, Barnes was forced to sell his beloved pet pig, Paddy, to cover expenses during his first year at Whitworth College. After two years of study at Whitworth, Barnes enrolled at the State College of Washington. In 1925 Barnes earned his Bachelor’s in bacteriology, three years later his Master’s also in bacteriology, and, in 1929, became the first recipient of a Ph.D. upon completion of his thesis.

C.C. Todd, Dean 1929-1949

F.L. Pickett, Dean 1930-1939, Discipline: Botany

Paul H. Landis, Dean 1939-1947, Discipline: Sociology

Stewart Hazlett, Dean 1947-1960, Discipline: Chemistry

Carl J. Nyman, Dean/Vice Provost for Research 1968-1986, Discipline: Chemistry

1986-1997 Robert V. Smith, Dean/Vice Pharmaceutical Chemistry Provost for Research

1997-Present DeanKaren P DePauw, Dicipline: Kinesiology

According to President Bryan’s Historical Sketch of the State College of Washington:

The first announcement relative to graduate work appeared in the sixth annual catalogue (1896-1897). The announcement was as follows: ‘no specific courses are offered for graduates. But the student desiring to take work leading to Master’s degrees, M.S. are invited to make application to the president.’ A year of residence, an examination and an acceptable thesis were required. In the following year two graduate students were in residence, Jessie D. Hungate, and Orin H. Stratton, and every year thereafter there have been enrolled candidates for the Master’s degree… In 1917 the Legislature formally recognized the function of the college relative to graduate work. In 1922 the Graduate School of the State College was formally established in accordance with the law and Dr. C.C. Todd was made acting dean.

Graduate School Announcement 1922-1923, the first such publication by the Graduate School, provides a brief history of the program:

Graduate work at the State College of Washington was first announced in 1896. No specific courses were designated, but students interested in advanced work were invited to make application to the President. In the following year the requirements for the Master’s degree were stated to be one year of residence or three years of professional work in the field of the undergraduate major and completion of a satisfactory thesis. It was provided also that the candidate must pass an examination on the prescribed course. Under these provisions the first advanced degree was given in 1902.

During the next few years graduate enrollment grew steadily and in 1908 a committee was appointed to take charge of the work. This plan of administration was followed until the Board of Regents established the Graduate School. History of the Graduate School from The Graduate School Announcement 1922-1923.