The Chicago Theological Seminary

THE CHICAGO THEOLOGICAL SEMINARY

REPORT OF THE PHES IDENT

FOR THE PERIOD FROM SEPTEMBER 23, 1924 TO JUNE 5, 1928

The Twenty-third Triennial Convention was held on September 23, 1924, in connection with which the new Residence Halls were dedicated,

The Twenty-fourth Triennial Convention, to which this report is made, was not called to meet until June, 1928, in order that the dedication of the completed buildings might also be celebrated and the seventieth year of the active life of the institution fittingly observed. Although the Seminary was chartered in 1855, actual instruction did not begin until 1858.

The period covered by this report is the most significant section of the Seminary's history. It includes a remarkable development in its buildings, its faculty, its student body, and its general prestige and influence among the Churches. These factors will now be set forth in as concise form as possible:

RELATIONS WITH THE UNIVERSITY OF CHICAGO

The affiliation with the University of Chicago has worked successfully during the period covered by this report. In the death of President Ernest DeWitt Burton, the Seminary lost a member of the Advisory Cotmnittee and a counselor nhose understanding of the problems of theologioal education was based upon his long experienoe in the Divinity School. His suocessor, Presi- dent Max Mason, came to his position of high trust from the scientific field. His interest in the religious life of the University and the work of the Divinity School and the Seminary is deep and genuine. He has been a member of the Advisory Committee of the Seminary, and a friend to our work in every relation. Dr. Shailer Mathews, Dean of the Divinity School, has sustained his cooperation in the development of the Seminary, and is a member of the Advisory Committee. The wisdom of our removal to the neighborhood of the University is more amply confirmed every year.

The completion of Swift Hall by the University has given the Seminary neW rooms for its academic work without expense, thereby avoiding the nece5si~y of erecting lecture halls. All the resources of the University are placed at the disposal of our students. Courtesies to University faculties are extended also to our professors.

From time to time minor problems of adjustment may need to be solved; but they can be met successfully in the spirit of understanding and cooperation which have marked our relations with the University in the past •

.RELATIONS WITH THE HYDE PARK CONGREGATIONAL CHURCH

The Seminary always has sustained close relationships with neighbor- ing Congregational Churches, as was the case on the West Side with First and Union Park. On moving to Hyde Park the same cooperation was soon effected. This has grovm especially gratifying in recent years. Members of the faculty serve the Hyde Park Church in many relations. The Church welcomes our students into its membership and work. It has issued calls for Ordination Councils and -2-

generously aided in establishing ministerial relationships for them. On June 3, 1928, it ordained four students to the ministry, as reoently it sent out the letter missive for the Council that ordained Professor Wilhelm pauck. Reverend Willis L. Goldsmith has been constant in hiB effort further to augment this pleasant Church and Seminary relationship.

THE BO~~D OF DIRECTORS

The Board of Directors has suffered loss by death of two of its members whose terms of service were long, and marked by unfailing fidelity to the Seminary.

Reverend E. H. Stickney of North Dakota was in the best sense of the word a IIpioneerll home missionary. He saw the state of North Dakota grow in population and he guided the churches to keep pace with its progress. Dr. Stickney never failed to be present at the meetings of the Board and to perform his full part whenever his counsel and help were needed. His is an honored name among Home Missionary superintendents and Directors of Chicago Seminary.

With possibly one exception, the ~ecord of Mr. Fales' long connection with the Seminary is unique in its history. Elected to membership on the Board in 1891, a year later he became one of the Seminary's two Vice-Presidents. In 1897 he became first Vice-President; and in 1903, he became Chairman of the Board. For nearly fifty years, Mr. Fales served the Seminary loyally and faith- fully, having been attorney for the Board, before he was elected to membership. He died Deoember 22, 1926. He was courageous, forceful, and enthusiastic; yet gentle and affectionate - a pillar of strength to his associates, and to the work he represented.

In June, 1927, the Board voted to hold semi-annual meetings in order to keep better informed concerning the affairs of the Seminary and to become personally acquainted with the members of the Faculty. The first of these meetings was held in November,(1927). The afternoon session was devoted to a survey of the academic work of the Seminary, the new courses being given especial attention. Members of the Board expressed their appreciation of this opportunity to meet the professors and to hear from them the account of their plans and methods of wor-k, The June meeting might well be devoted chiefly to business and the November meeting to academic matters. The Faculty feels the need of closer personal aoquaintance with the Board of Directors. There is but little opportunity to secure this personal contact. The Board ought to know the academic program of the institution and the men who are planning and executing it; the professors ought to know personally the men who are responsible for the administration of the institution. In the last analysis the personal factors are of supreme moment in the work of the Seminary. Unless the professors 'and Di- rectors can know each other personally the Seminary will suffer at a point where its interests are sensitive and vital. This demands a November meeting planned so that opportunity for the survey of the academic as well as the business program of the Seminary shall be possible.

Twelve Directors are to be elected at this meeting to compose the group whose terms of office expire in 1933.

THE ADVIS ORY COMMrTTEE

The Advisory Committee consists now of eighteen members, with Dr. Lorado Taft as Chairman. The Committee does not meet formally, but is consulted as occasion requires. Dr. Taft has sent several letters to the Committee, and his own counsel has been of the greatest value, especially in the construction and decoration of the Clarence Sidney Funk Cloisters. �3-

THE STATE SUPERINTENDENTS I COUNCIL

The state Superintendents I Council was organized four years ago primarily to brin~ the State Superintendents of the Middle West into closer touch with the Program of the Seminary, especially with regard to recruiting and the placing of men in the churches.

The Council is called annually, usually at the time of the Mid-Winter Conference of Churoh Officers in Chicago. It elects its own officers and makes its own program. Dr. P. A. Johnson, of Grinnell, Iowa, is the President for 1928, and the Reverend Charles C. Burger, of st. Louis, ~assouri, Secretary. The Council has been very helpful to t}~Seminary in bringing the Faculty into closer touch with the problems of the field.

THE BOARD OF EXAMINERS

The Board of Ex~iners is ~~deup of one or more visitors from each sto.te of the Middle West elected annually by the various State Conferences.

1'he Examiners visit the Seminary once a year, inspect its classes, confer with its faculty, and make a general survey of its entire program. It is their duty then, after giving such counsel as they may bring from the field, to return to their State Conferenoes, to make a written report of their visit to the Seminary, and to present the same publicly at the annuo.l meetin~ of the state Conference, inclUding a copy of the report for the printed minutes of the Conferenoe.

This annual visit on the part of the different Examiners elected by the Conferences is one of the most helpful contacts ~etweenthe Seminary and the field. Throu~h the 1927 revision of the Charter and Constitution, the Examiners are now recognized as Official Delegates to the Seminaryls Triennial Convention, and they therefore have a direct part in the management of the Seminary.

REVISION OF THE CONSTITUTION

The Board of Directors is empowered by the charter to adopt the constitution under which the Seminary is administered. It became apparent that the document which had been adequate before the removal from Union Park vms not sufficient to cover the expanding needs of the Seminary at the University. Therefore, after careful study, a revision was adopted by the Board June 7, 1927. ,D'ile no cho.n~es were made which alter the· essential character of the older Constitution, the revision provides for: the increased machinery of administration; the removal of the rigid requirements of creed subscription; and desirable adjustments in the Triennial Convention representation.

Under the new constitution, the Seminary still retains its distinct character of relationship to the Congregational churches and service to them at the vital point of training their leaders in a ministry as wide as the world, and chan~in~ with the needs of society.

STUDENTS

The summary of students is by years, Lnc Iudkng the fcur quar-ner s in order, spring, summer, autumn, and winter. The following table shows the details: -4-

YEAR SEMINARY UNIVERSITY TOTAL 1924-25 ------136 ------~- 151 ------287 25-26 ------154 ------101 ------255 26-27 ------271 ------187 ------458 27-28 ------~----- 255 ------186 ------441 The register of students generally reveals ebb and flow; but the line of advance revealed in the foregoing figures is encouraging.

The number of University students receiving instruction in Seminary classes shows that our standards of instruction command the confidence of graduate scholars.

The steady rise in the total number of students registered is matched by higher academic quality in respect to preparation, work done in residence, and promise of personal leadership.

We shall speak later of the value of the Summer Quarter. The student attendance only is noted here as follows:

1925 1926 1927 1st Term ------47 ------112 ..---,------101 2nd Term ------51 ------111 ------107 Total Different Students 66 ------161 ------140

Turning from this gratifying statistical study, we note tho following significant factors in the development of student relations:

The first concerns physical health. With the opening of the Univer- sity Clinics in the summer of 1927, the University established a thorough Student Health Service, in the effort to prevent those particular types of illness which are charaoteristic to student life. From the beginning, the Seminary has appreciated the assistance which has been freely rendered by Dr. Dudley B. Reed and his staff, as well as the generous service of Dr. Henry French Goodwin. Beginning with October 1, 1928, every Seminary student will be given a medical examination by the University Health Service" and his physical condition will be checked up regularly during his cour-se, This is without expense to the Seminary and is another practica.l benefit derived from our University affiliation. The Faculty w.ill thus be anabled to guide its academic work in relation to the physical health of the studonts. The administration of this plan falls naturally under the duties of the Director of Studies.

The social life of the students has beon pr-omo'bedin many ways. The Joseph Henry George Commons affords a beautiful room for daily fellowship for the weekly student meetings, for the monthly gatherings of University and Seminary Congregational students held under tho auspices of the Congregational Club, and for the weekly tlTeasll on Wednesday afternoons, which have been supervised by Dean Margaret Taylor, assisted by the wives of Faculty mombers and students. These more formal occasicns are supplemented by the gatherings in students' rooms, where lithe problems of the untver se" are settled ....lith a franlmess and finality which will be understcod by all who reoall the exper « iences of college and Seminary days.

The religious life of the students and Faculty finds expression'in weekly fellowship meetings, and in those private interviews which are ncw made more easily possible by the provision of offices and studies for the Faculty. We are confident that the helpful relations between students and teachers are maintained at a high level of friendship and helpfulness in the Seminary. If there are rewer expressions of the religious life in prayer-meetings and the terms of conventional "piety," there is no less depth and seriousness of Christian experience among the students. The proof of this is,their readiness to undertake sacrificial service at home and in foreign missions, the integrity of their Christian character, and the sustaining of the ideals which always have marked the ministry of the Congregational Chur.cbes,

FELLOWSHIPS AND SCHOLARSHIPS

Fellowships. Awards for 1926 and 1927 are now pending - one for six hundred dollars a year for two years to Hugh V. Wilson, who plans to work for the degree of doctor of philosophy, beginning in the Autumn; and one for twelve hundred dollars a year for two years to Ray K. Oshimo, who plans to continue his studies in Japan, returning to Chicago for his doctorate. Herman C. Johnson is recommended for the current year.

Scholarships. For the year just closing six special scholarships of seven hundred dollars each were provided from the general funds of the Seminary to be awarded as warranted, on the basis of scholarly effic1enpy and all-around ability, to regular students in their second and third years of residence in the Seminary, thus enabling them to devote themselves enti~~ly to their scholas- tic pursuits. Five assignments were made, one to a Senior and four to Middlers. Harvard and DePauw Universities and Olivet and Washburn Colleges were repre- serrted in the awards.

The results of this proV>s,on by the Directors have been gratifying. This is shown in two ways. In the first instance, the grades of each one of the students have shown a marked rise, from 72% of A's to 84~. More significant, however, than this statistical item is the fact that the freedQm from that remunerative employment, which had marked the educatio~al history of all of these men. gave them opportunity to range more Widely ~~ their studies than was necessary for keeping up grades. The plan has encouraged independent study of a broadening and d&epening kind. The experiment has thOroughly justif~ed itself.

THE SUMMER QUARTER

As we study the development of the Seminary since the autumn of 1924, we find one of its most encouraging factors in the Summer Quarter. This is not an ordinary "Summer- School"; it maintains the high academic standards of the other quarters. For convenience, it is divided into two terms, and the standards of admission are less rigid, in order to afford its privileges to ministers; but all students are expected to sustain their work at a high level, to take the required examinations, and to receive credit for work done. It is not intended to furnish a series of inspirational addresses in lecture form.

It may take some time to establish the worth of the Summer Quarter in the consciousness of our ministers; but we confidently expect that, as doc- tors attend the Mayo Clinic or other standard medical institutions, so ministers will shape their plans and attend a Summer Quarter at least every two or three years, being encouraged and aided to do this by their churches. We have appreciated the interest and cooperation of the .State Superintendents in making it possible for a representation of their ministers to attend the Summer Quarter this year. -6-

For the approaching Summer Quarter, we have provided the largest staff of teachers and the richest offering of courses ever furnished by the Seminary. For the first time, we are cooperating with the Divinity School of the University in providing a short session devoted to special instruction for religious workers with students. If this succeeds, we hope to arrange in 1929 for a similar course designed especially for ministers~ This is in no sense a substitute for the regular academio courses, but would offer an evident advantage to those who cannot attend for a single term or for the entire quarter.

THE SEMINARY SERVICE PROGRAM

The Board of Directors has interpreted the function of the Seminary in the terms of service to the churches of the Middle West, through personal correspondence, representation at Associations and Conferences, sharing in church anniversaries, dedications, and ordinations, and in giving personal counsel in manifold ways to ministers and churches. The wide range of this ministry scarcely appears on the surface. The Seminary is the friend and help- er of the Congregational Churches, especially of the Middle West.

Calls for pulpit supplies, the settlement of pastoral relations, and the solution of local problems, involve scores of letters) often requiring careful consideration. Problems in theology and the Christian life are repeatedly presented to the faculty, and careful attention is always paid to them.

The faculty responds every year to a large number of invitations to preach, to lead group conferences, and to give addresses, as a voluntary service which they cheerfully render. The inspiration and practical help afforded in this way cannot be tabulated, but it is an essential part of the Seminary's business.

The call for leadership in State Conferences is wide-spread and urgent, :~ have attempted to distribute this representation so that at least every second year the Seminary should be represented on the Conference programs of our constituent states.

ThQ Seminary carried a curriculum of home study for many years which became too exacting to be permanently continued, without doing violence to·the quality of resident work. The faculty, after oareful consideration of the problem, decided that the largest good would be secured by utilizing the resources of the American Institute of Sacred Literature and the Home Study De- partment of the University to carryon this work. InqUiries therefore are turned to these well organized agencies in the University, and we believe that no loss has been suffered in the quality of the service rendered, while at the same time, it has been pl~ced on a more economical basis.

A DAY OF PRE-LENTEN MEDITATION

For the last three years there has been held annually at the Seminary a day of meditation and devotion preparatory to the observance of Lent. The leaders of the meeting have been ministers and members of the faculty, and the quiet services have been of great value. The Seminary has thus rendered service to the churches of Greater Chicago. -7-

PROBLEMS OF THEOLOGICAL EDUCATION

The entire subject of education is under radical discussion, and theological training shares in this criticism. This ma~ter has been considered at meetings of the Board of Directors during the last three and a half years. The Faculty has been sensitive to the situation as it has planned for the development cf the Institution. We believe that the Seminary is aware of the problems; that the changes in curriculum and method vlill meet them successfully; and that the Seminary is taking a position of real leadership in the training which it offers. The actual needs of our churches in a changing world have been the principal factor that has guided us in shaping the work.

ACADEMIC PROGRAM AND FACUlTY

When the Lawson bequest was assured as early as October, 1925, the faculty innnediately began a thorough study of the program of the Seminary, pro- jecting a development Which, it was expected, would involve from three to five years for its realization. The study was committed to a sub-committee composed of Professors Walker, Holt and Robinson, and their recommendations were discussed in full meetings of the faculty. In March, 1926, a complete program was adopted as a result of this study, the fundamental principle of which was that the Seminary must adopt a curriculum and methods of study which would result in a thorough preparation of religious leader~ for the actual service of the church in the modern world. This involved radical changes in the curriculum and the projection of new courses of study, not all of which had been realized.

Meantime, a careful search was conducted for teachers who could fill the most innnediately urgent positions which were defined by the program. There- fore the academic year 1925-26 might be designated as a period of study and research.

In October 1926, Professor Carl S. Patton and Professor Fred Eastman began their work; Professor Arthur C. McGiffert came to the Chair of Christian Theology; Professor Wilhelm Pauck was associated nith the department of history; Dr. Matthew Spinna assumed the Librarianship; and Mr. Von Ogden Vogt began his lectureship in Art and Worship. The faculty was greatly strengthened by this addition of talent. It was apparent that the Seminary was entering upon a new period in its academic life. Therefore, the year 1926-27 might be termed one of adjustment and integration. Standing in an academic world as highly specialized and complex as that of the Seminary in its University relations such a program cannot be defined or established in a short space of time. The new members of the faculty addressed themselves with enthu~iasm and industry to their tasks, and quickly won respect and status in the academic field. They brought also to the Se~nary devotion and earnestness in accord with the traditions of the earlier days.

The last year covered by this report of academic development was ushered in by a great sorrow. Professor Henry H. Walker, who succeeded Pro- fessor Hugh McDonald Scott in the Chair of Ecclesiastical History, in 1910 had spent six months in New York enjoying a well-earned period of release from the routine of instruction, during which time he had been, as we know now, seriously overworking in the libraries of the City gathering material for a book and enriching his lectures. He was suddenly stricken and died before the close of the Summer Quarter. The worth of Professor Walkerts service to the seminary and to the churches has been expressed in many ways, and is again recognized at this Triennial Convention. -8-

Beginning the new academic year under this sense of an accepted sorrow, the faculty moved forward into what we may confidently call a year of growing efficiency. The general character of instruction has increased in quality as the Professors have found themselves more oonfidently in mastery of their material and in the technique of teaching.

We proceed now to note the development of certain outstanding factors in the new academic prog~wm of the Institution.

DEVELOPMENT OF CASE l~HOD TEACHING

Since the beginning of the academic year in October, 1924, we have been calling repeated attention to the development of our Case Method in Semin- ary teaching. We wish now to review our progress and to direct attention again to the results which justify not only the continuance but the increased use of thi s method.

It began in the courses in Preaching, where it was used, even before 1915. My book on "Pr Lnc Lp'Ie s of Pr-eachfng'' was based on the inductive study of specific cases in the form of sermons, and was published in the sumrnsr of 1924. It has had a wide sale, being now used as a text-book in many Seminaries.

When Professor Arthur E. Holt began his work in October, 1924, it was on the basis of certain principles for the development of the department of Social Ethics, which were approved at that time by the Board of Directors and have been sanctioned since by the success of his work. These principles are so clearly stated by Professor Holt in a recent article, "Case Method and Teaching at Chicago Theological Seminary," published in RELIGIOUS EDUCATION fcr March, 1928, that the following quotation is made in full:

"Have we not come to the time when as seminaries we must recognize that the churches have as much to teach us as we have to teach them?

The Harvard School of Business is spending thousands of dollars to bring into the classroom actual business situations for the students to analyze. The law schools have more and more been organized on the 'ease method. I

The agricultural colleges in the early period of their development taught agriculture by the textbook methcd, both method and the meterial being academic. In the next stage of their development, they established their special experiment stations and their demonstration centare. This was a distinct advance over the previous stage, but as demonstration centers the extent of the demonstration was that it is always possible for unusual people to do unusual things, if they have unusual means at their disposal. Then came a new period, when it was seen that the real laboratory from which the college mus~ draw its conclusions was the farms tilled by the average farmers in the areas in which the colleges were located.

I~ was seen that every manls farm was a laboratory, provided one really knew what methods he was using. It was found that on these farms was taking place much valuable experimentation. The agricultural college then enlarged its staff of field agents, whose business it was not so much to tell the I'arreera what they should do, as to observe what they were doing.

The college became a clearing house for experience, and considered that it did the best work when it could gather together the experience cf the best, and place it at the disposal of the rest. The college thus took its place at the center of a state wide group of cooperators in the cause of better agl"icul,~ure. -9-

NOTI something like this, it seems to me, we are v~s10ning as the ideal function of the seminary. It is fortunate if a seminary has never boasted of its isolation from the religious groups with which it ought to be a priVilege to cooperate; if it has never deserted the denomination in the interest of a service of some rarefied form of the church invisible~

The instruction of the seminary is no longer based on the textbook method. That was too academic, both in method and in content. Advance was made to the special demonstration parish, where, under supervision, methods were devised and tested, but the demonstration parish has only shown what was already proved in agriculture; namely, that unusual people could do unusual things if they were given unusual means with which to do them. Are we not ready to realize, as did the agricultural colleges, that our real demonstration parish is that total area of religious experienee served by the average parish, led by the average pastor, and that every mants church is a laboratory, provided he will tell us what is happening?

The tcase method' in teaching is nothing but a device for bringing actqal life situations into a class room. The student's time is limited, his ability to ·overcome space limitations is limited. The case method seeks to bring the original documents of sociological study into the compass of the stu~ent's limitation where he may have an opportunity to analyze and programdze his work with reference to them. 11

Following the application of this general principle in the instruction furnished by the Seminary we note the following:

Dr. Anton T. Boisen, Chaplain of the state Hospital at Worcester, Massachusetts, has been a pioneer in the study of the function of religion in personality disorders. His studies have furnished the basis for most significant conclusions. He brings to the Seminary during one quarter in residence two major courses in the field of theology and .pastoral work. He also guides the work of Seminary students who reside in Worcester during the summer. Two Chicago Seminary men expect to be there during the coming vacation.

Another novel application of the Case Method was carried out during the Autumn Quarter of 1927. Professor McGiffert and Dr. Boisen united in con- ducting a Seminar in Theology. It began with the study of records secured at Worcester in which religion was seen as the energy which acted in the cases to restore the person to normal liVing, or to "save" him. The pertinent questions were then asked: From what was the person saved? Thus by an unusual approach from actual experience and not from formal theology, the whole subject of God, sin, salvation, Christ, with their related themes, were brought into review. The value of such an approach to technical theology cannot be over-estimated. It is Vital, interesting, and revealing.

Continuing the use of the same method, Dr. James Mullenbach, for fifteen years the Impartial Arbitrator on the Joint Industrial Board of Hart, Schaffner and Marx and the Amalgamated Garment Workers, has been added to the Seminary's staff of teachers. Dr. Mulleribach is a graduate of the Seminary and brings to his work the results of an experience extending over many years in the field where the application of Christian principles to actual living conditions in industry make him one of the greatest living authorities. Dr. Mullenbaeh brings to this class room actual cases as the basis of his lectures and discussions. During the Autumn Quarter of 1927, his class lectures were broadcast through WMAQ in Chicago. -10-

The further extension of this method will be reported still more fully in the field of Social Ethics and the Department of Research and Survey conducted by the Seminary and the Chicago Congrega.tional Missionary and Exten- sion Society. This represents such a departure from the former lecture method of Seminary instruction, that the Directors believe t,hat the Triennial Conven- tion and all who are interested in theological education should understand it.

SOCIAL ETHICS

Vfuen Professor Arthur E. Holt began his work in Sooial Ethics, October I, 1924, it was with the approval of the Board of Directors that he should be supported in his plans to bring to the Seminary actual reports of the on-going life of the churches, making each of them a field of study and an object of service. This material was not designed for the use of the department of Sooial Ethios alone but was to be available for all departments. It has been used to great advantage in this way. Probably there is no other Seminary that has so large an amount of vital material for use in seminars and lectures.

This involved the appointment of a Research Assooiate, to do the investigating and reporting in the varicus fields which should be chosen for investigation. Also the service of students was required from time to time. The status of Research Associate is clearly defined and thoroughly warranted in Schools of Business Administration, and abundant preoedents for it are therefore at hand; it is new in the work of Seminaries. In 1925, Rev. Carl R. Hutchinson, a graduate of the Seminary in 1923, was oalled, and his work ha~ been efficient in a variety of fields.

The first field of investigation was the Rescue Missions of Chicago, from which he brought to the Seminary a wide variety of carefully-studied cases in answer to the question, put in the vocabulary of West Madison street: "What happens when a mission stiff gets converted. II As a result of this study, we possess a unique and valuable body of material which will be of great service in teaching as well as to the plans for a Rescue Mission in Chicago being worked out by tho Congregationalists in Chicago.

Then came the critical situation in the milk supply of Chicago, when Dr. Bundesen demanded the inspection of all herds from which milk came to Chicago. This caused a condition of great strain wnong the farmers involved. The Seminary wanted to learn from first-hand investigation how religion actually "I'unct.Loned" in such a crisis. This could be determined only by the skilful and sympathetic investigation of actual cases, 1~. Hutchinson has just completed the personal study of two hundred unselected farmers in McHenry County, which is the heart of the trouble zone in the dairy district. In ~Anyways this study is unique among rural investigations carried on in the United States. Its value to the Seminary in preparing ministers for rural parishes, about which we shall speak later, is self-evident. The Federal Council of the Churches has chosen the dairy situation as the field for their study of the Rural-Urban Conflict; they therefore called for Mr. Hutchinson's w~terial at a recent meeting of the National Sociological Congress at Washington; they are expecting to make use of Dr. Holt and ~M.Hutchinson as primary sources of information in this field. Thus the Seminary becomes a partner in a national enterprise of the churches.

The Seminary is carrying out its plan to keep in close contact with churches of various types within a radius of 150 miles of Chicago. ~. Hutchinson is now studying the t own and country churches where our students are -11- serving, and his work will be of great assistance to the Professor in Practical Theology to whom reference is made under Personality Development ~ndPublic Speaking.

In describing the developments in Social Ethios, reference should be made to what is also reported under Case Work, the Joint Project with the City Society, and Training for the Rural Pastorate, all of which are closely related to this subject.

TRAINING FOR THE RURAL PASTORATE

Repeated requests have been made to the Faculty and Board of Directors that the Sew~naryshould carryon special courses for the training of ministers for rural parishes. These have sometimes been accompanied by the suggestion that a Seminary which is to do this work should be located near an Agricultural College and that students in the environment of a great city are inevitably diverted from rural fields.

Chicago Seminary, located at the heart of the agricultural Middle West is keenly concerned with rural communities and churches. It is sometimes forgotten that Chicago has unique advantages for just this sort of training. One does not have to establish a school at a cross-road in order to understand the problems of the open country. The meat packers bring their conventions to Chicago for the discussion of the practical problems of the stock farmers; and there is undoubtedly no Agrieultural College which is doing more fundamental and directly practical work on the problems of the farmer than that which is carried on in the laboratories of the University.

One of the interesting developments of the Seminary in this dtrection is the organization of the Tovm and Country Club, composed of students who are preparing for work in rural sections and small towns. Their meetings are carefully planned, the discussions are earnest, the addresses are often given by leading men. Under the leadership of this Club, together with Dr. Holt, Mr. Hutchinson, and accompanied by Professor Pauck and Professor McGiffert, two extensive walking trips h~ve been conducted in the Spring vacations among the significant rural parishes, where programs were put on by members of the Club at community meetings, and opportunity for mutual acquaintance with the people was thus afforded. These walking trips have proved so successful that they will probably be carried on not only in the spring vacation, but on some week- ends during the Autumn and Spring Quarters.

Arrangements have just been completed with the Radio Broadcasting Department of the Illinois Agriculture Association whereby Chicago Seminary is to broadcast from their station a program on Rural Church Life. Mr. Hutchinson is Chairman of the Committee in charge of this, Dr. Eastman and Dr. Holt being the other members. This station has a wide range and is the leading stetion of the farmers allover the Central West. It is expected to continue this ar- rangement indefinitely. The topics for the month of May are as follows:

May 7 - The Country Church of the Future Professor Fred Eastman May 14- The Religious Subsoil of a Better Agriculture Dr. Arthur E. Holt May 21- What I found Out About Religion in McHenry County Carl R. Hutchinson May 28- Vfuy I am Going to a Rural Parish By two members of this year's graduating class of Chicago Theological Seminary -12-

Mr. Hutchinson is also our representative at all meetings of the National Country Life Association and at the meeting ~f Research Men operating under the Purnell Act of which Mr. Galpin of Washington is the leader.

Occasionally it is profitable to consider the international signifi- cance of the Seminaryls work. Because it bears upon this point, as well as upon our Rural Training program, the following letter from a student from India specializing in preparation for his return to wor-kon the rural problem there, is given in full: University of Chicago Dear Dr. Holt: 23rd April, 1928

I wish to tell you horr deeply I appreciate the wonderful opportunities you are affording me to get the kind of training and experiences vihdch are going to help me in my work back in India among her Villagers.

Friends in India and even in this country were rather sceptical of the kind of training that I could get in this country, thinking that the two countries being so different, whatever I learn here could never be applied to the Indian situation. But my recent trip with you to the farming country in Central Illinois, and my association with Mr. Hutchinson entirely scouts this idea.

At present there is in India a great volume of enthusiasm among edu- cated men to be of service to their country especially to help the starving villagers who are more than 90% of India1s population. But so far such attempts at help have been merely to deal with symptoms, as for example to organi7.e re- lief work during 'an epidemic or a famine with the disappearance of any such crisis the enthusiasm and service agencies quickly disappear also. There has been no attempt to stUdy causes of these evils in a systematic manner so as to wo rk out some permanent remedy. It is here that the training I am getting under you and Mr. Hutchinson is going to be of utmost value. As I see it, you are gradually perfecting in this country a technique for the study of social problems which is going to be a standard for all social workers.

Although at present Mr. Hutchinson's stUdy is mainly concerned with the dairy situation it seems to fit in exactly with my own problem of the econ- omic uplift of the Indian farmer. As far as the method of approach and study is concerned. In the first place it is an education in itself to be with him watching his approach to the farmer, the way he disarms suspicion and puts people at ease that they so readily cooperate with him by giving the most inti- mate details connected with the problem, so much so that before the conversa- tion is over they are the best of personal friends.

Then the organization of his material in the form of questions and answers so skilfully worked out that all phases of the problem are comprehen- sively covered. Finally his technique for arriving at generalizations from the material gathered is so unique and so valuable for all kinds of social investigations that he is going to help me to build up a technique for my own situation in India in the study of rural indebtedness, rural illiteracy, rural health, etc.

I consider this great help you and Mr. Hutchinson are giving me as service rendered to my poor co~try. I am very fortunate indeed in having your sympathy and guidance, and Mr. Hutchinson's brotherly help. I feel that more than all one could get through books and class room lectures it is such personal -13- contacts and fellowship in service that are going to help us really" in meeting our problems, for the solution of which we have dedicated our lives.

Most gratefully yours,

(Signed) Appadmai Aaron

Graduate Student from University of Madras

THE JOINT PROJECT WITH THE CITY SOCIETY

By the bequest of Victor F. Lawson, the Seminary and the Chicago Congregational Missionary and Extension Society were entrusted with a large eapital sum to be used for Congregational work~ The interests of the two or- ganizations are essentially the same. At once it became apparent that the Se~nary and the City Society ought to cooperate in a large and fraternal way. The Society decided that all expenditures would be made only on the basis of a need that had been defined by a thorough study of each specific situation. They asked the Seminary to assume the direction of their department of Research and Survey in the person of Dr. Holt, agreeing to provide the salaries of such instruction as might be necessary to release him for the direction of the de-· partment, and also to aid in the support of students who might be employed prof- itably in the work. This is the most significant cooperative project ever undertaken by the Seminary, and is proceeding successfully.

In order to release Dr. Holt from his former full,schedule of instruction, Rev. Samuel C. Kincheloe and Dr. James Mullenbach take certain of the courses formerly given by Dr. Holt. Thus his academic service to the Seminary is not seriously impaired, and the Seminary is more than compensated by the enlarged range of Dr. Holt1s practical contacts in Social Ethics and Sociology.

The field staff of this department is made up of students who are seeking advanced degrees of the Seminary or the Divinity School of the Univer- sity of Chicago. The stafr is organized in a Seminar for which academic credit is given. The religious life of the entire Chicago Area is being studied although specific fields in which there are critical problems .are made the object of special observation and research. The reports of field investigation are first brought before the seminar. Vigorous criticism by the group of the whole content and process of the investigation is followed by a vote as to the conclusions which are to be based on the findings and these results are then presented by the students to the proper committee of the City Society. As an educational project, this seminar is of superlative value. Students feel an incentive to gather material and to think seriously about matters of great con- sequence. Chicago Theological Seminary thus becomes the center of a great laboratory of urban experience in religious life.

The Chicago Federation of Churches has asked that the results of the surveys thus made by the Joint Project be placed at their disposal to guide them in the planning of the federated work of Chicago Protestantism.

The maps which have already been produced in the Seminar reveal the movements of population and character of neighborhoods, knOWledge of which is absolutely necessary for the statesmanlike planning of church extension. Thus the Send nary is extending its range of accurate research into both the rural and city areas, bringing from both the material that is absolutely necessary for the training of the modern minister. -14- ART .~D RELIGION

We r ecogm se that as a S'errd ner-y which seeks to train spiritual leaders, TIe have a definite responsibility to develop more adequately the imaginative, aesthetic, and creative life of our students. To this end we have inaugurated courses in Religion and Art. This project began with the coming of Professor Fred Eastman to the Seminary, October.l, 1926, and the beginning of the loc- tureship of Reverend Von Ogden Vogt. This program is still in process of definition and equipment, but its main outlines are well-defined. They include oourses in Religious Literature and Drama, the Fine Arts, and Music. It will be inunediately apparent that this is a field whi.ch is somewhat new, and will call for courage and the pioneering spirit, if it is to be fully occupied.

Dr. Eastman undertook to organize work in three related fields: the religious use of literature and biography; self-expression in artistic form through writing, including advanced composition and journalism; and the artistic expression of thought and personality by means of drama.

In the courses in biography and literature, the effort is made to define the personal qualities of leaders who have had an important influence in the religious life of the world. The lives studied include St. Francis of Assisi, Martin Luther, Oliver Cromwell, John Robinson, Thomas Jefferson, Benja- min Franklin~ John Wesley, Abraham Lincoln, Charles Darwin, Booker T. Washingto~ Phillips Brooks, and several others. For each biography, the students have classified the material according to an outline prepared by Professor Eastman, the main points of which are as follows: Heredity; environment (including the social conditions of the times); the purposes by which the subject steered his life; who opposed him and why; what did he do; what did he say; the dramatic or vivid scenes in his life; in what did he fail; his dominant characteristics; and the sources of his power.

The courses in Advanced Composition and Journalism have been intro- duced in order to prepare ministers not only to express themselves clearly in various kinds of literary forma, but to extend their influence by writing ar- ticles on religious subjects for both secular and religious journals. Experience with college graduates reveals a serious lack of technical skill in the delivery of their material, whether it be in a class report or a formal sermon. There- fore we have undertaken to overcome this difficulty in cour~es which involve thorough training of a graduate standard. Journalism is interpreted in its broadest possible sense. Every student in last year's class in Journalism had at least one article published before the end of the term.

In the teaching of drama as a means of developing imagination and power of self-expression, the results have been most gratifying. The members of the classes have made notable progress in realizing their own unknown resources, and out of the class work, sorne significant contributions have been made to the published material in this field. To describe the three courses in this field, I quote from a recent article by Dr. Eastman in the Union Semin- ary Alumni Bulletin.

IIAt the outset, let it be understood that by religious drama I do not mean Biblical drama necessarily. I mean all drama which has a religious effect upon an audience. Biblical drama is but a small sector of this field; and many Biblical dramas do not have a religious effect. A religious drama is one that exalts the spirit, sheds light on spiritual struggles, or challenges the will to right wrong. The dramas my students are studying and striVing to create are for the most part modern dramas with hwnor and imagination~ dealing -15- with the religious struggles of our own day, and seeking to reach the emotions and wills of the present generation. So far as it is possible for frail human flesh, 1~ are trying to avoid preaching and propaganda.

liThe first course consists of a study and analysis of the best available dramas presenting the struggles of thr spiritual life. The student begins wi, th some of the Greek tragedies of Aeschylus and Sophocles; then dips into the Mystery and Morality Plays of Mediaeval England; then jumps to modern dramas, where he deals in detail with representative plays of our better plu~vrights. In the classroom we take these plays apart in order to see what makes them tick. By the end of this first course, the student has learned some of the essentials of dramatic technique - emotion, ch~~acter, conflict, suspense, action, choice and climax.

"Following this, the second course is one" in playwriting. Having learned something of the principles of dramatic technique in the first course, the student now tries to apply them in a play of his own creation. He sweats blood in his travail, and the child which he "brings forth is not always perfect or complete; but when the play is fini shed, the student has had a discipline for his emotions and imagination as rigorous as any intellectual discipline provided by philosophy or higher mathematics •.

llInthis pLeywr-Lti.ngcourse, the workshop method is used. Each student chooses his own characters, theme, situation, and plot, and lays them all upon the workshop table, where they are criticized and discussed by the other members of the class. Each student is encouraged to discover and portray some spiritual struggle at his own elbow - some conflict with which he is familiar - rather than one about which he has only read. Last year, for exwmpls, one student chose the struggle of an Oriental student on an American college oampus. The play which resulted (The Colcr Line by Irene Taylor MacNair) was presented at Detroit before the Student Volunteer Convention last December and has since sold 3200 copies and has been produced probably 200 times in churches and colleges. Another student showed the conflict between Jeremiah and the priests and people of his day. These examples are probably sufficient to illustrate the types of dramas which the students endeavored to create. One student wrote at the conclusion of his course last year, 'It gave me something original and" creative to do; it set me digging into the recesses of human character; it gave me a ne~ and critical appreciation of an art which ought to be of prime importance to me in religious work.'

liThe third course, which I snare with Mr. Davis Edwards, professor of public speaking, deals with the principles and technique of the production of religious dramas in churches and parish houses. In this oourse we use the project method. We select three playsl and produce one every four weeks.

hSwmning it up, then, the teaching of religious drama in a theological seminary is not a new wrinkle in religious education, or a means of making Bible stories interesting to chLldr-enj it is a deliberate attempt -bo develop strength, beauty, and power in the imaginative and creative life of the student. It is no fad; its roots go dovin to the beginnings of religion and drama. Its immediate warrant lies in the need of our times for a spiritual ministry to the aesthetic and emotional life of our people. 1\

PUBLIC WORSHIP Only a beginning has been made in giving instruction in Public Worship as a part of the Art and Religion project. The churches of the Pilgrim Faith inherited the traditions of simple and sometimes inadequate forms o£ worship. -16-

Within the last two years, the National Council's Commission on Evangelism and the DeYotional Life has received a specific gift of $30,000 for the study of Public Worship adapted to use in Congregational Churches. The Commission has organized Seminars throughout the country, and scores of ministers are working on the subject. The Seminaries must join in this denominational project. In Rev. Von Ogden Vogt, author of "Art and Religion" and lIModern Worship,lI we have the most widely-known authority on this subject in the country. Thus far, we have been able to offer only one major in the Spring Quarter and one or two minors in the Summer Quarter. The offerings of the Seminary in this field ought to be increased. The Seminary oan make an essential contribution to this vital factor in our denominational development, and it ought to do so.

HAMMOND LIBRARY

One of the points at which the Sem~nary has suffered loss during the years since removing from Union Park is in the care and gro~~h of Hammond Library. At the outset, we contemplated merely the maintaining of a small "House Li.brar-y'", which should contain the minimum of reference and current books necessary for the students in the performance of their ordinary work. The re- mainder of our library, after leaving a considerable part of it for Union Theo- logical College, was to be merged with the University of Chioago Libraries, tit~ to the books being established by our book-plate. As time went on, it was apparent that we needed to maintain a larger general library than we had at first planned. The gift of Henry M. Hooker Hall made it possible to carry cut this nec~ssary plan as well as to provide for the specialized Source Library which was an unchanged part of our project for Hammond Library.

The most costly source of our loss was the lack of a permanent Librar- ian after Reverend Harry T. Stock retired in 1922. Our resources did not permit us to proVide for a salary, and therefore we carried on our work under a Faculty Committeeman, Professor Clarence A. Beckwith, with stu4ent assistance, until Dr. Matthew Spinka began his work, October 1, 1920. Since that time, we have made conspicuous progress in the increased resources and efficient administration of the Library.

REPORT OF TRE LIBRARIAN FOR TIlE PERIOD FROM

October 1, 1926 to May 10, 1928

When the present library administration began on October 1, 1926, it was found necessary, in the first place, to build up a certain minimum of organization to carryon, in a satisfactory fashion, the work of the library. This was done by securing the services of Miss Helen R. Curtis as assistant to the librarian, whose chief duties comprise attendance in Hooker Hall and cataloging; and by supplementing the work of the regular staff'by the part time work of tv/o students. With this staff it is now possible to have the library open from 7:45 A.M. to 11:00 P.M. with constant attendance at the desk.

It was found necessary to add a considerable number of books to the collection in order to fill the serious gaps which occurred during the period when no regular librarian was in charge. Besides filling the gaps, the library has been securing all the current outstanding books in the field of theological sciences. The total number of accessions amount to 3,708. Of these 1,792 were purchased, while the remaining 1,916 were either gifts, or came into our possession by exchange of duplicates with other libraries, or were assimilated from the unclassified stock in our stacks. A compari~on with previous years might make this total figure of accessions a little more graphic: During Mr. Stock's -17- five years of administration (191T-1922) the' library acquired almost exactly the same number of volumes as has been done since October, 1926. For the period after his resignation (1922-1926), the library acquired only 1,259 volumes, which amounts to just about one third of what has been secured during the present administration. The total expenditure for books amounted to $5,551.88.

An inventory of the library resources has been made during the past year, and it was found that the total number of volumes, exclusive of bound periodicals, amounts, at present to 20,919. But since the rate of the present accessions is about 2,000 volumes a year, this total will henceforth grow quickly.

Besides serving the needs of the student body and the faculty, the library launched a program of extension service by which it offers the Loan of the latest and most important publications in the religious field to all Con- gregational ministers of nineteen middle west states. Recently, the library entered into an understanding with the Congregational Library of Boston, whereby the country east of the Rocky Mountains has been divided, for the parpo.e of this service, between the two institutions. Every q~arter a list of the latest acquisitions is mailed to this constituency.

The average number of loans a month amounted to fifty. This service meets with the most enthusiastic reception on the part of the users and thus the library projects itself into the life of our ministers in a most helpful and effective manner.

It is the special aim of Hammond Library to become the central reposi- tory of source materials relating to Congregationalism in the middle west. A considerable progress has been made in this project. The materials ~lready in possession of the library, though uncatalogued, have been plaoed together and a great deal of new material has been secured. This especially applies to the purchase of duplicates from the Union Theological Seminary which represents the greatest single acoession to this collection. Another outstanding acquisition has been made in securing the permission to copy thirteen manuscript volumes of Dr. T. O. Douglass' Builders of a Commonwealth--treating of Iowa Congregation- alism since its beginning--which hitherto existed only in the single original copy at Grinnell College Library. The librarian has been busily engaged in the task of locating and securing the missing items of various official denominational reports, local church material, magazines; and encouraging by personal letters the writing of looal histories where they did not exist.

Since its removal to its new and permanent quarters in Hooker Hall, the library is now in a position to render much more efficient servioe to its entire constitueney, for hitherto it was hampered both in its functioning as well as in its expansion for lack of proper housing and equipment. We, therefore, face the future with the consciousness that the library is entering upon an era of its greatest usefulness as well as expansion.

Respectfully submitted,

(Signed) Matthew Spinka -18-

THE REG ISTER

The problem of Seminary publications has given us much concern. At one time, twenty-five years ago, the Faculty sustained for several years "Cur-e rent Discussions in 'Pheo Logy ," which commandedrespect o.mongscholars. After this was abandoned, the "Register" ran a checkered career. This was due to a lack of funds, and also to the difficulty of securing adequate editorial supervision.

With the coming of Professor Eastman in October, 1926, a trained journalist was available. Under his editorship the REGISTER has assumed a new place among the service agencies of the Seminary. Letters have come from many parts of the world, expressing their appreciation of the value of the contents of this publication and its growing influence among the churches.

THE THORNDIKE HILTON CHAPEL

On March 16, 1926, The Thorndike Hilton Memorial Chapel was dedicated, a girt to the Seminary by Mr. and Mrs. Henry H. Hilton in memory of their son. The purpose of this butlding is unique in a Protestant Seminary. It is not designed for pUblic assemblies but is open daily, where hundreds of students pass its doors, for private meditation and prayer. Sinc0 the dedication of the building, Mr. and Mrs. Hilton have enriched it by the addition of more beoutiful windows on the sides, an organ in the gallery screened from the chapel, and a richly engrossed copy of a poem which Thorndike Hilton wrote concerning Leonardo dn Vinci's head of the Redeemer. Bya fair estimate we know that more than 100 persons visit and use the chapel daily. These represent all religious faiths. One of the most widely-known business men of Chicago comes here for moments of qUietness whenever he is in the neighborhood. Various groups of students use the Chapel for religious meetings. We hold a Vesper Service here on Wednesday afternoons, conducted by our students. Nearly a mIndred weddings have been held in the Chapel since it was dedicated. The Manual of Meditation prepared for Chapel use has been widely quoted, and copies have been requested for church use. A similar structure is being planned in the new buildings of Union Theolog- ical Seminary. Thus the use of the Chapel has amply justified the purpose for which it was built, and the Seminary is rendering through it an essential service to the religious life of the University and the community.

THE TRAINI NG OF WOMEN FOR "RELIGIaUS WORK

The Seminary always has been open to men and women on equal ter~. Training especially designed for women in church positions was given for a time in the Christian Institute, successor to the Deaconess Movement, whi cb com- manded the attention of Illinois Congregationalists before 1909.

In 1909 the Congregational Training School for Women was organized and continued until July 1, 1926, when ita work was turned over to the Seminary. The organization is continued, however, and the Board of Managers is composed of members of the Seminary Board of Directors.

The history of the Training School is a source of satisfaction to those who have worked for its founding and support. Tha graduates of the Schocl are at work in many parts of the world, and Congregationalists are justly proud of them. By the closing of the School they become academic orphans. Something ought to be done by the Seminary to give them standing among the students and alumni of the Seminary. Such action would be appreciated by them and is thoroughly deserved. The Deans of the Training School have been women of high character and devotion. We wish to express out honor attd good wishes to Dean Margaret Taylor, who finally retires January I, 1929, after closing the work of the School in the coming summer •

. The reason for turning over the work of the School to the Seminary is principally the unanimous decision that the graduate standard ought to be established, and therefore the Seminary as a graduate school is prepared to do this work with a minimum of cost. The churches insist that salaried women workers shall have the background of college training as well as the technical discipline necessary for their work. The decision to close the Training School was reached by the Board of Managers of the Training School after long and careful study, and the initiative requesting the Seminary to continue the work came from them.

Therefore the Seminary assumes an obligation', for the discharge of which the following equipment is necessary.

HOUSing. This includes dormitorYi sooial room, dining and kitchen space, and such other rooms as the growth of the work shall demand. The two houses at Woodlawn Avenue and Fifty-eighth Street are ready for this purpose. These should bear the names of those whoee lives have been connected with the Semina.ry.

Curriqulum. The Faculty has been studying adjustments in the curriculum which will provide for the especial needs of women studying in the Seminary. Dr. Carl S. patton is now at work in California preparing two Survey Courses in Bible, whioh have in view the training of leaders in Religious Edu- cation. other courses await final decision until the actual needs are seen when the new work begins October 1, 1928.

The available academic r esour coa at hand include the following:

The regular courses leading to the D. B. degree, which has been received by two women since 1926.

The M. A. degree in Religious Education, which can be secured by college graduates in two years and is the course recommended especially for women preparing for church work.

Especial courses, to be organized and offered as the needs appear, for which a certificate may be given. At present we do not advise offering any particular course for women students alone.

Teaching. The training of women for church work can be carried on by the present Faculty with the possible exception of one additional teacher. This should be a woman, a regular member of the Faculty, prepared by training and experience for full Faculty standing. This person is being sought, and we hope will begin work in the coming fall.

THE BUSINESS DEPARTMENT Organization and Development The period now passing under review has witnessed the development of the Business Department and amply justified its existence and service. Until the definition of the financial campaigns, building program, and enlargement of academic departments, the Seminary was administered by the voluntary services of the Executive Committee and the assumption of administrative work by the professors and president. who always has besn a teacher as well as executive officer. After determining the building and inst'ructional program in relationship with the University, it appeared that the academic requirements of a graduate Seminary, now relentlessly brought up to the standards, of a great University whose work is internationally recognized for its high grade, called for the devotion of the professors more completely to their r~search and teaching work. The raising of money, erection of buildings and the vastly increased 'cost and care in maintaining them, demanded a thorough business organization. On January 1, 1923, Mr. Robert Cashman became' Business Manager and ha a 'continued to the present time with growing efficiency. Re aour-ce'f'u L in initiative, accurate and diligent in following det ed La,'tireless in his devotion and service, Mr. Cashman has built his life into the Seminary in a way to win the gratitude and confidence of the Board of Directors ·and all the friends of the Seminary.

The detailed reports of this department will show the range and quality of the work done. Only a few high spots are noted here.

On September 1, 1924, Mr. Cashman reported as follows:_

"Unde r the direction of the Finance Committee, a thorough organization has been perfected in the Business Department, with a trained s~aff in both field and office, relieving the President and Faculty of the butdon of the Finan- cial Program, and of the upkeep and supervision of the Seminary's buildings and grounds and general publicity and other promotional aotivities.lI

The growing importance of this department may be seen f~om the report of the year closing May 31, 1925, during which more than 50,000 letters 'und over 250,000 pieces of printed matter were sent out from the office.· In this way the. constituency was kept informed concerning the plans and needs of the institution and progress was made in the difficul~ ta.sk of creating the coneo Lousne ss throughout the area of the Triennial Convention ~hat the Seminary actualry belongs to them and is at work in their highest interests, training leaders for the greater Congregationalism of tomorrow. '

With the beg~nning 6f the construction of the new bui~dings the re-' sponsibilities of the Business Department were greatly increased. The Chairman of the Building COIJD11ittee;Mr. ,Clarence S. Funk, gave time and attention generously to the planning and construction; and Mr. Ga s.hman and Mr. 'David McKeith,Jr.', Assistant Business Manager and Registrati bore theit part constantly in following up details. The Board of Directors is confident ~hat on the business stde the Seminary is most efficiently or-gerdsed and administered. THE RECRUITING PROGRAM

When the residence halls were completed and the faculty augmented, it became apparent that the new resources of the Seminary ought to be brought to the attention of prospective students in an aggressive and organized way. This must be, in the nature of the case, a temporary program, lasting until all the buildihgs should be completed and the larger faculty .should have time to establish themselves not only within the area of the University but among the churches, where teachers like Fisk, Curtiss, and Taylor had been known and called upon for service with great satisfaction. The President and other members of the faculty within the limits of warranted absences, had visited colleges and consulted with students concerning their vocations. Dean Frank G. Ward had followed through the large list of "prospects" with fidelity, and had visited many colleges. To the Business Department the organization of a program of recruiting was committed. This was not designed to release the faculty from service in this field" but to complement and, economize their labor. - Mr. Asa R. Crawford, a graduate of Washburn College, with experience in the fields of finance and -2l~ ~ecruiting began hie work on December 16, 192~. He has traveled widely and with great acceptance among the colleges and universities; he has brought the seminary to the favorable attention of students in Eastern colleges; the success of his work is confirmed by the increase in students shown by this report. In addition to Mr. Crawford's results in the specific field of recruiting, he has secured more than $60,000 in new pledges for the Seminary.

The Board of Directors recognize that th~ final appeal for students will be made by the outstanding quality of the academic work of the Seminary and the assured reputation of the professors as scholars and teachers. Dignified and organized promotion of the Seminary's resources is also necessary for at least a few years and the program of recruiting should be continuod.

Greater cnre in selection of students has been exercised each year. The effort has been made to secure candidates who gave promise of real power in religious leadership. This will be continued with added emphasis in our recruiting work.

VOCATION DAY

As a factor in the Recruiting Program, the observance of Vocation Sunday has been carried out by the Business Department with conspicuous success.

On April 26, 1925, an exchange of pulpits by the ro.nisters who are members of the Board of Directors was arranged. The results were encouraging and warranted a second experiment~ This was undertaken on February 7, 1926,. and other ministers than members of the Board of Directors ahared in the project. This exchange of pulpits enlisted 70 mi.nisters in pulpit exchanges, throughout the Middle West.

The next year, February 6, 1927, the exchange plan was again carried out with 34 members cooperating and preaching on the Christian ministry as a life-work.

On February 26, 1928, an appeal was made to ministers to preach on Christian Vocations in their own pulpits or by exchRnge as they might prefer~ The response was remarkable; 514 ministers observed the day as suggested. Many Bent copies of their sermons for preservation in Hwmmond Library. Probably this was the most wide-spread and effective observance of Vocation Sunday that ever has been carried out among the Congregational Churches~ Thousands of worshippers heard the message~ Young people were brought to face the call of Christian life vooations~ We have no statistics by whioh we can accurately estimate the value of the sermons thus preached; but the project will bear fruit for many years to come~

The Board of Directors reJo~ces in the success of this movement fos- tered by the Seminary, and hopes that it may be continued in such ways as seem to warrant its largest success~

BUILDINGS AND GROUNDS

From the beginning of Mr~ Cashman's service, he has set a high standard for the care of the Buildings and Grounds~ The lavlns have been carefully kept. Mr. Funk's knowledge of landscape gardening and the care of trees has been of great value to the Seminary. We have received from the neighborhood and the University many expressions of approval for the beauty of our grounds~ This has added to the physical prestige of the Seminary and has set a fine example to students for the care of their church property. THE OFFICE STAFF , The B~ard of Directors appreciates the fine loyalty and service of the office staff. The Bimple equipment of the past was entirely inadequate to han- dle the administrative details of the Seminary's larger program, the colleotion of pledges, the distribution of literature, and the clerical routine which have come with the growth of the Seminary. The office staff now consists of 7 persons, organi~ed as follows:

Berthe L. Wheeler, Office Secretary Norval Waldo, CaBhier Kathleen C. Woodman Mary Jane LaGrou Doris Bullock Virginia I. Parker Bonnie Jean Hanvey

Stenographic service has increased as the faculty hae been enlarged and its demand for assistanoe has grown."

Dr. Holt's clerical assistant is Maude B. Peck.

Dean Ward and President Davis are given the fulltime aid of a secretary-stenographer. Dr. Eastman has the assistance of a young man trained to aid him in his particular field. Assistance is given other Seminary faculty members for their distinctly academic work, as necessary. In this way, the time of the teachers is used more advantagoously for the Seminary.

REGISTRAR AND ASSISTANT BUSINESS W~NAGER

Reverend David McKeith, Jr., a graduate in the class of '26, has rendered most effective service in helping to carry the countless details at- tending the completion of the buildings; in assuming the work of Registrar, which became too burdensome to be carried by Dr. Benjamin W. Robinson; and in perfecting arrangements for the remunerative work of students. His knowledge of student needs, his interest in the Seminary, and his devotion to his work have made him a valuable member of the staff since he began his work on July 1st, 1924.

JANITORS

The securing of heat from the University January 1, 1928, made it possible to cut down the work of firemen. The care of the buildings, under the plan of daily service in students' rooms, as well as the up-keep of halls, lawns, and general property, demands the labor of eight janitors. These are colored young men, neatly uniformed, and working happily together in a fine spirit of loyalty. Mr. Cashman has been their personal friend in times of sick- ness or difficulty, and the janitors have furnished a fine example of Christ~an fellowship and fidelity.

THE FUTURE

It would be impossible to express my npprecietion adequately for the loyal cooperation of our Directors and Seminary staff -- to Dr. Graham Taylor and Dr. Clarence A. Becbvith, who, though retired, are thinking constantly in terms of the Seminary's interests; to Dr. Benjamin-W. Robinson, our Professor of New Testament Interpretation and Theology; to Professor Davis Edwards, who gives half his time to u. in the Department of Publio Speaking; and to the others whose names have been mentioned.

The next Triennial Convention probably will be held in 1930; and the one following, in 1933. the year of the great World's Fair in Chicago.

As we think of the unusual developments that have taken place at the Seminary in the last five years, it ~a more and more clear to us that our task is not finished, but only begun. The real test is before us - Supreme leadership will be required. The buildings are finished. The eduoational program must now be strengthened and enlarged. As we have stood together in the past in our efforts to render a worthy service to the Chur.ches, 60 let us now share in tho responsibilities of the future, abiding in Christian fellowship. labor- ing in a spirit of faith and courage, seeking neTI solutions to our larger problems, and pressing ever onward in our quest for Truth, that His Kingdom may come. and His will be done!

Cordially yours •.

OZORA S. DAVIS.

President.

June 1. 1928