July 22, 1910] 



SCIENCE 



103 



direct outgrowth of a university extension 

 center. 



Of 32 state universities and colleges re- 

 ported, 23 are offering general extension 

 work. Of these, 15 have thoroughly or- 

 ganized, comprehensive extension depart- 

 ments under the permanent direction of a 

 dean, director or extension committee 

 (universities of California, Colorado, 

 Florida, Georgia, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, 

 Minnesota, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, 

 North Dakota, Nevada, Oklahoma, Oregon, 

 Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Washington, Wis- 

 consin, Wyoming, Pennsylvania State 

 College and Rhode Island State College). 



With reference to credit work offered 

 by means of extension courses, returns 

 show at least 22 universities in this classi- 

 fication (Brown, Chicago, Cincinnati, Col- 

 orado, Columbia, Florida, Harvard, Indi- 

 ana, Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota, Missouri, 

 Nebraska, Northwestern, Oregon, Pitts- 

 burgh, Texas, Toledo, Tulane, Washington 

 — at St. Louis — Wisconsin and Wyoming). 

 Of these, 11 use correspondence-study in 

 their extension teaching (Chicago, Florida, 

 Indiana, Kansas, Minnesota, Nebraska, 

 Oregon, Texas, Washington, Wisconsin 

 and Wyoming). 



It is noticeable that a number of state 

 institutions are making use of extension 

 methods chiefly as an aid to the teachers 

 of the state. This limited field probably 

 results from three causes: first, the evi- 

 dent need of some agency to assist the busy 

 teacher to keep in touch with educational 

 advances; second, the fact that this is the 

 path of least resistance, extension work 

 among teachers offering no difficult prob- 

 lems, and, third, on account of the organic 

 relations between the teacher and the state 

 university, which are evidently becoming 

 more closely knit, in spite of the high- 

 school protest against university domina- 

 tion. 



The sums devoted by state institutions 

 to extension teaching during the past years 

 have varied greatly. In a number of these 

 institutions the work is either of recent 

 origin or newly reorganized. Not a few 

 of the responses from heads of state uni- 

 versities record the intention to ask for 

 specific appropriations at the next legisla- 

 tive session. 



Except in a few eases extension work 

 has not been self-supporting and, unless 

 conducted under the most favorable con- 

 ditions as to location, it cannot be made 

 self-supporting. Nor does there seem to 

 be a logical reason why this form of edu- 

 cation should be less freely acknowledged 

 as a public charge than the old established 

 institutions of our educational system. 

 Its immense possibilities for economic and 

 cultural usefulness to the whole people, its 

 need for state support to insure a perma- 

 nent existence, and the fact that the equip- 

 ment of established institutions should be 

 made available for its use, all point to the 

 wisdom of making university extension an 

 organic part of the state system of educa- 

 tion. 



Conclusions drawn from the data col- 

 lected point to a notable broadening and 

 liberalizing of the academic spirit. The 

 fact that there are those among the old 

 conservative universities now offering ex- 

 tension teaching with no more stringent 

 specification than that the applicant shall 

 be able to show that he can take the work 

 to advantage, is evidence of a remarkable 

 change in their educational atmosphere. 



In the state universities a similar spirit 

 is manifested, but in a greater variety of 

 ways. The state university recognizes a 

 responsibility to a more definite constitu- 

 ency — the people of the state M^ho support 

 it. That this constituency shall be served 

 by the university in every way in which 

 the university is the best instrument to 



