Emerson E. White

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Emerson E. White
President of Purdue University
In office
30 April 1876 – 23 August 1883
Preceded byJohn S. Hougham (acting)
Succeeded byJames H. Smart
Ohio Superintendent of Public Instruction
In office
1863–1866
Superintendent of Portsmouth City Schools
In office
1856–1861
Personal details
Born(1829-01-10)January 10, 1829
Mantua, Ohio, U.S.
DiedOctober 21, 1902(1902-10-21) (aged 73)
Columbus, Ohio, U.S.
Alma materCleveland University

Emerson Elbridge White (January 10, 1829 – October 21, 1902) was an American educator and the third president of Purdue University.

Career

Ohio

Emerson White began his teaching career at the age of seventeen when he was both a student and an instructor at Twinsburg Academy in Ohio.[1]: 285  After graduating without a degree from Cleveland University in 1851, he was the principal of a few schools in the Cleveland area before serving as superintendent in Portsmouth, Ohio, from 1856 through 1861.[1]: 285 [2]: 95 

White owned the Ohio Educational Monthly from 1861 through 1875.

National Educational Association in 1872, and the National Council of Education in 1884 and 1885.[1]
: 288 

Purdue University

Reorganization

Purdue University, circa 1882

As president of

Morrill Act. He interpreted the Morrill Act as requiring instruction in agriculture and engineering as leading elements and instruction in languages, history, and literature as subordinate elements.[2]: 89–92  While he did not believe that other fields of study were prohibited by the law, he felt that Purdue's resources were limited and should be focused on those required areas. He wanted the education to be broad enough to go beyond training for a specific job and also to prepare alumni to be good citizens.[2]
: 93–94 

Sixty-six students attended Purdue during White's first year (including forty-nine in its preparatory academy) and the instruction mainly consisted of fundamental science courses.[2]: 87-88, 109  White's plan reorganized Purdue's departments into a University Academy, a College of General Science, and Special Schools of Science and Technology.[2]: 92  Among the Special Schools was the School of Mechanical Engineering, Purdue's first four-year course of study.[2]: 98, 110 

Fraternity controversy

Believing that fraternities distracted from Purdue's industrial focus, White issued a ban on such societies that eventually led to his resignation. In 1877 he began requiring incoming students to make a written pledge not to join a Greek-letter organization.[2]: 107  An incoming graduate student in 1881 who was already a member of Sigma Chi refused to sign this pledge and was denied admission.[2]: 108  The Tippecanoe County circuit court upheld this denial, but on appeal, the Indiana Supreme Court ruled that Purdue's objections to fraternities were unfounded and remanded the case.[2]: 109 [4]: 72  White responded by issuing new rules allowing fraternities but restricting the honors that their members could receive.[2]: 109  When the Indiana Senate passed an 1883 appropriation bill with a rider requiring the repeal of anti-fraternity regulations, White resigned as president.[4]: 73  The Indiana House of Representatives did not pass the appropriation bill before the legislative session ended and Purdue received no state funds that year.[4]: 73 

Return to Ohio

After resigning from Purdue, White moved to Cincinnati and wrote textbooks about arithmetic and pedagogy.[1]: 286–287  During three years as superintendent of that city's public schools beginning in 1886, White reduced the use of written tests and made teachers' recommendations the basis for promoting a student to the next grade level.[1]: 286 [4]: 74  He held this job during a time when Ohio state law began to officially require racial integration in schools.[5][6]

Personal life

White was born on January 10, 1829, in Mantua, Ohio, and died on October 21, 1902, in Columbus, Ohio.[2]: 94 [1]: 284, 287 

White married Mary Ann Sabin in 1853.[2]: 95  They had five children including West Virginia Governor Albert B. White.[1]: 289 

Emerson White was a

Lane Theological Seminary.[1]: 288  In 1896 he traveled to Glasgow as a delegate to the Pan-Presbyterian Council.[1]
: 288 

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l Venable, W. H. (January 1903). Boone, Richard C.; Palmer, Frank H. (eds.). "Emerson Elbridge White". Education: A Monthly Magazine Devoted to the Science, Art, Philosophy and Literature of Education. XXIII (5). Boston: The Palmer Company: 284–289. Retrieved January 3, 2022.
  2. ^
    ISBN 0-911198-95-4
    .
  3. ISBN 978-0-8018-8655-3
    .
  4. ^ a b c d Hepburn, William Murray; Sears, Louis Martin (1925). Purdue University: Fifty Years of Progress. Indianapolis: The Hollenbeck Press.
  5. ^ Greve, Charles Theodore (1904). Centennial History of Cincinnati and Representative Citizens. Chicago: Biographical Publishing Company. p. 886.
  6. ^ "Benjamin W. Arnett". Walnut Hills Historical Society. Retrieved January 3, 2022.
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