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Philip G. Hubbard educational partnerships, February 1967

Expanding Educational Horizons by Philip G. Hubbard Page 1

ADDENDUM F

EXPANDING EDUCATIONAL HORIZONS

Philip G. Hubbard
Dean of Academic Affairs
The University of Iowa

Holly Springs, Mississippi, might not seem to be a likely place to interest many Iowa citizens, but a surprising amount of travel has taken place between that community and many places in Iowa during the past dozen or so years. A prime reason for this interest is Rust College, a small liberal arts institution which the Methodist Church founded after the Civil War to provide spiritual guidance for liberated slaves and to prepare them for entry into the life of the nation. To this day, the enrollment has been almost exclusively Negro, in spite of its official designation as "integrated". The college is partially supported by the Methodist churches of Iowa, North and South Dakota, and Minnesota, and therefore receives special attention during brotherhood week each year about this time. From time to time, the Rust Choir also tours this area, singing at churches, schools, and service clubs for the purpose of raising badly needed funds. About three years ago, a new dimension was added when a group of faculty and students from The University of Iowa and other interested citizens in Iowa City began an informal program of assistance to citizens in Marshall County, where Holly Springs is located. This led rather naturally to an interest in Rust College, and finally, to a formal association with The University of Iowa. The story is one which should be a source of interest, if not pride for Iowans, because it seems to be typical of the open-minded attitude with which many of them approach the complex problems which are associated with racial discrimination.

To appreciate the nature of this activity, one must understand that Rust is in deep trouble, struggling to achieve accreditation in the face of rising costs, ever-higher standards of required performance, and sullen hostility from the surrounding community. For several decades, it quietly went about the business of producing teachers for the sub-standard high schools of Mississippi. In the process, it provided the only feasible educational opportunity for the sons and daughters of rural Mississippi families who fall far within the poverty limits by current standards. Ninety percent of the students at Rust come from families with annual incomes of less than two thousand dollars, and there is an average of six and one half children per family. The college, in the words of its own self-study

. . . is isolated from the main current social, cultural, and educational advantaged. Its library facilities and access to major libraries that abound in other more favored locations are extremely limited. The secondary schools from which the majority of the student body comes have inadequate libraries.
. . . Because of the deficiencies which we have been seeking to overcome for the past five years we have been excluded from the grants that have been available to develop institutions.
Because of isolation and inadequate sources of income, Rust college was not in a position to compete for quality teachers who have the necessary institutional skills to make the best use of modern teaching aids and methods.

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ADDENDUM F EXPANDING EDUCATIONAL HORIZONS Philip G. Hubbard Dean of Academic Affairs The University of Iowa Holly Springs, Mississippi, might not seem to be a likely place to interest many Iowa citizens, but a surprising amount of travel has taken place between that community and many places in Iowa during the past dozen or so years. A prime reason for this interest is Rust College, a small liberal arts institution which the Methodist Church founded after the Civil War to provide spiritual guidance for liberated slaves and to prepare them for entry into the life of the nation. To this day, the enrollment has been almost exclusively Negro, in spite of its official designation as "integrated". The college is partially supported by the Methodist churches of Iowa, North and South Dakota, and Minnesota, and therefore receives special attention during brotherhood week each year about this time. From time to time, the Rust Choir also tours this area, singing at churches, schools, and service clubs for the purpose of raising badly needed funds. About three years ago, a new dimension was added when a group of faculty and students from The University of Iowa and other interested citizens in Iowa City began an informal program of assistance to citizens in Marshall County, where Holly Springs is located. This led rather naturally to an interest in Rust College, and finally, to a formal association with The University of Iowa. The story is one which should be a source of interest, if not pride for Iowans, because it seems to be typical of the open-minded attitude with which many of them approach the complex problems which are associated with racial discrimination. To appreciate the nature of this activity, one must understand that Rust is in deep trouble, struggling to achieve accreditation in the face of rising costs, ever-higher standards of required performance, and sullen hostility from the surrounding community. For several decades, it quietly went about the business of producing teachers for the sub-standard high schools of Mississippi. In the process, it provided the only feasible educational opportunity for the sons and daughters of rural Mississippi families who fall far within the poverty limits by current standards. Ninety percent of the students at Rust come from families with annual incomes of less than two thousand dollars, and there is an average of six and one half children per family. The college, in the words of its own self-study . . . is isolated from the main current social, cultural, and educational advantaged. Its library facilities and access to major libraries that abound in other more favored locations are extremely limited. The secondary schools from which the majority of the student body comes have inadequate libraries. . . . Because of the deficiencies which we have been seeking to overcome for the past five years we have been excluded from the grants that have been available to develop institutions. Because of isolation and inadequate sources of income, Rust college was not in a position to compete for quality teachers who have the necessary institutional skills to make the best use of modern teaching aids and methods.