914 



SCIENCE 



[N. S. Vol. XXXVIII. No. 991 



university's work; and that all authority 

 should rest with these and with the com- 

 munity which supports the institution. 

 This organic relation of the actual workers 

 to the university government is at once a 

 natural right and the foundation of that 

 personal interest and enthusiasm which are 

 necessary to successful endeavor. Note 

 that I do not say that the instructor and 

 research worker should be made to feel 

 that he has an interest in the university 

 organization and a part in university 

 policies through his advice and so forth, 

 but that the teacher and research worker 

 is in the nature of things the actual source 

 of authority in the university, conditioned 

 only by the relations of the university to 

 its community. 



What, now, is the proper form of uni- 

 versity organization, and how can it be ap- 

 proached in our state universities? 



The governing board should represent 

 both the community served and the univer- 

 sity. The people of the state furnish the 

 financial and spiritual support for the uni- 

 versity and receive the benefits of its work. 

 The support can be withheld whenever the 

 returns are unsatisfactory. The interests 

 of the people do not require to be protected 

 by the governing board. The members of 

 the university faculties contribute their 

 lives, and receive in return a living wage. 

 It is only with the greatest difficulty that 

 they can withdraw their investment in the 

 enterprise. They furnish also the plans of 

 work and the expert direction. The nature 

 of the work is such that it is essential that 

 the staff should have a free hand in exe- 

 cuting its plans and should be responsible 

 to the people for its achievements. It 

 seems clear that a governing board com- 

 posed of three members appointed by the 

 governor from the state at large, three 

 members elected by university faculties 

 from their own number, and the president, 



would at least not err on the side of giving 

 too great autonomy to the university. It is 

 clear that complete autonomy would carry 

 with it the danger of losing touch with the 

 university's constituency, while the pres- 

 ence of an equal representation from the 

 universitj^ and the state would free the 

 faculty permanently from the stigma of 

 control by "non-scholar trustees." Those 

 present well know, however, that boards of 

 the existing type may show an excellent 

 spirit and judgment. 



The internal organization of the univer- 

 sity should have reference solely to effi- 

 ciency in teaching and research. The or- 

 ganization should be created by the mem- 

 bers of the staff by virtue of their sovereign 

 powere within the institution. The first 

 natural subdivision of the university is that 

 into departments based upon the relations 

 of the fields of knowledge. The process of 

 subdivision of subjects and creation of new 

 departments has gone too far and must be 

 reversed. Under the old order of things the 

 only way for a man of parts to gain recog- 

 nition and influence which he was capable 

 of using, was to become the head of a de- 

 pai'tnient or the dean of a college. This 

 accoi;nts for the creation of many new de- 

 partments and schools for which there was 

 no need. Administration could be simpli- 

 fied, duplication of work, apparatus, books 

 and supplies could be avoided, and a closer 

 correlation and a better spirit and more 

 stimulus to scholarly work could be secured 

 by the creation of larger departments based 

 on close relationship of subject-matter. 



The staff of such large departments 

 might number ten, twenty or more men. 

 In the nature of thing-s the organization 

 within such a department is based upon 

 the personal interest of each member of 

 the staff in the success and welfare of the 

 department, and its object should be to 

 place the resources of the department in 



