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The Pennsylvania State University The Graduate School College of Education THE REINVENTION OF HONORS PROGRAMS IN AMERICAN HIGHER EDUCATION, 1955-1965 A Dissertation in Higher Education by Julianna K. Chaszar © 2008 Julianna K. Chaszar Submitted in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy August 2008 The dissertation of Julianna K. Chaszar was reviewed and approved* by the following: Roger L. Geiger Distinguished Professor of Higher Education Dissertation Adviser Chair of Committee William Pencak Professor of American History David Post Professor of Higher Education Patrick T. Terenzini Distinguished Professor of Higher Education Dorothy Evensen Professor-in-Charge of the Higher Education Program *Signatures are on file in the Graduate School. ii Abstract A wave of interest in honors programs occurred at American colleges and universities in the late 1950s and early 1960s. Although honors education emerged in the U.S. some thirty years earlier, its scope had been limited primarily to private institutions and allowed upper division students to undertake independent reading and research in their major field. In contrast, the period of revitalization and new program formation beginning in the late 1950s was characterized by expansion in several directions, including the introduction of programs for freshmen and sophomores, creation of honors options in general education, adoption of honors education by major public institutions, and collaboration between colleges and secondary schools to identify and encourage academically talented students. The Inter-University Committee on the Superior Student (ICSS), led by Joseph W. Cohen at the University of Colorado at Boulder, was a significant force behind the renewal of interest in honors work during that period. This dissertation traces the formation and activities of the ICSS, which operated from 1957 to 1965 with financial support from major foundations and was succeeded by the National Collegiate Honors Council (NCHC). The study also explores ideals and practices regarding the organization, content, and role of honors education during the ICSS period, through the words of honors advocates and with specific examples from institutions. iii Table of Contents List of Figures ................................................................................................................... vi List of Tables ................................................................................................................... vii List of Abbreviations ..................................................................................................... viii Acknowledgments ............................................................................................................ ix 1 - Introduction ................................................................................................................. 1 Sociological and cultural aspects of honors education ................................................... 4 Methodology ................................................................................................................... 8 2 - The Origins and Early Growth of Collegiate Honors Education .......................... 10 Upper division honors: the norm into the 1940s ........................................................... 30 The beginnings of lower division honors ..................................................................... 39 3 - A Favorable Climate for the Growth of Honors Education in the 1950s ............. 44 Reforms in secondary schools ...................................................................................... 45 Higher Education in the 1950s ...................................................................................... 50 The challenges of rising enrollment .......................................................................... 51 Experimentation ........................................................................................................ 55 Excellence ................................................................................................................. 58 4 - The Formation of the Inter-University Committee on the Superior Student (ICSS) ............................................................................................................................... 63 A new approach to honors education ............................................................................ 71 5 - ICSS First Term of Operation .................................................................................. 79 Newsletter and Information Service ............................................................................. 81 Guidelines for Honors Programs .................................................................................. 83 Conferences .................................................................................................................. 86 Site visits ....................................................................................................................... 90 6 - Main Issues in Honors Education: Substance and Structure ................................ 97 Departmental and general honors ................................................................................. 97 C. P. Snow’s Two Cultures ..................................................................................... 103 iv Teaching Methods: Acceleration, Enrichment, and Special Class Formats ............... 108 Collaboration Between Secondary- and Higher Education ........................................ 110 7 - Organizational Variations ...................................................................................... 119 Honors in Professional Schools .................................................................................. 119 All-University Programs ............................................................................................. 125 Honors Colleges .......................................................................................................... 129 8 - ICSS Second and Third Terms............................................................................... 134 Research and Evaluation ............................................................................................. 135 Graduate and Professional Education ......................................................................... 139 The Education of Academically Talented Women ..................................................... 143 Third term: 1962-1965 ................................................................................................ 147 9 - A New Landscape: Quantitative Indicators of the 1950s Honors Movement .... 154 Programs for the lower division .............................................................................. 162 Participation at individual institutions .................................................................... 164 Summary of Quantitative Findings ............................................................................. 170 10 - The Spirit and Scope of Honors Education ......................................................... 172 Major actors in the honors movement ........................................................................ 177 Summary of main findings ......................................................................................... 184 Postscript: The National Collegiate Honors Council .................................................. 190 Appendix A. Comparison of ICSS and NCHC guidelines ........................................ 193 Appendix B. Cumulative Roster of ICSS Office Holders .......................................... 197 Appendix C. The Superior Student Table of Contents, Vols. 1-7 (April 1958-July /August 1965).................................................................................................................. 198 Appendix D. Condensed Data for Public Institutions ............................................... 211 Appendix E. Condensed Data for Private Institutions .............................................. 218 Bibliography .................................................................................................................. 226 v List of Figures Figure 1. Inaugural Year of Current (1960s) Honors Program, 1950-1963 .................. 159 Figure 2. Departmental Honors Participation at the University of Kansas, 1950-1964. .............................................................................................................. 169 vi List of Tables Table 1. Type A: Special work in addition to regular program (1925) ........................... 23 Table 2. Type B: Honors Courses Superceding Regular Requirements (1925) .............. 23 Table 3. Public Institutions with evidence of honors activity, 1925 & 1944 (Aydelotte), and self-reported start date of most recent honors program (ICSS Inventory, 1960-63) .................................................................................................. 33 Table 4. ICSS Conferences, 1957-1960 ............................................................................ 88 Table 5. All-University Programs listed in the ICSS Honors Inventory. ....................... 128 Table 6. Glossary of program types in honors education. .............................................. 133 Table 7. Honors Provisions Established Prior to 1950 (Self-Reported in 1960-63) ...... 156 Table 8. Honors Programs at Public Institutions – Self-reported