Berry College: A History

Foreword

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 [First Page] [-9], (1) Lines: 0 to 24 ——— 0.0pt PgVar ——— Short Page PgEnds: TEX [-9], (1) Foreword The history of Berry College has long been consideredthestoryofitsfounder ,MarthaBerry.Formany of us, it is hard to separate Martha Berry and her remarkable career from the story of the institution that bears her name. I have told alumni audiences that Martha Berry floats through my office and often looks over my shoulder as I carry out the business of the day. People usually laugh, even as they recognize the ways in which an extraordinary figure can make her presence felt more than sixty years after death. A greatleadershouldinspirethosewhofollow,andmy colleagues and I strongly feel such inspiration early in the twenty-first century. Of course, one can appropriate Martha Berry’s vision to support both approval and opposition to current policies. For example, it is possible to cite written statements from 1925 to debate twenty-firstcentury college practices. For a dozen or more years after Martha Berry’s death, “Miss Berry’s wishes” certainly became the justification for resisting necessary changes. Conversely, several Berry College presidents have invoked the founder’s example to justify departures from tradition. Berry was a whirlwindwhointroducedmorechangesinherfortyyears at the helm than most institutions face during eighty to one hundred years. Berry’s educational experiment has lived on without her only because others took up her cause. This book tells the story of Martha Berry and her successors and shows how her vision has evolved over subsequent generations. Although the authors’ firsthand experience spans more than half the history recounted here, the book is no memoir. The narrative rests on documentary evidence. Familiar and beloved old stories that cannot be verified have not found their way into the story. Ouida Word Dickey came to Berry as a college freshman in 1946. Doyle Mathis began his studies here in 1954. They both pursued graduate studies aftertheircollegeyears.Dr.Dickeybeganherservice toBerryasafacultymemberinthebusinessprogram and served many years as associate dean and later as dean of academic services. Dr. Mathis returned to his alma mater in 1975 to become academic dean, a positionthatsubsequentlybecamevicepresidentfor academic affairs and then provost. After his retirement , Dr. Mathis taught in the Department of Government and International Studies. As the college centennial approached, I asked my two colleagues to begin work on a history of Berry’s first one hundredyears .Thisvolumerepresentsaproductoftheir fine efforts. Not only have Drs. Dickey and Mathis givenusthishistory,theyhavealsopreparedtheway for other students of college history to follow. Their careful archival work will guide others in the years to come. Berry College is known for the beauty of its campus and buildings and for its parklike twenty-eight thousand acres. The real distinction of the college, however,isitsmission,whichistoeducatethehead, ix 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 [-10], (2) Lines: 24 to ——— * 402.0733 ——— Short Page * PgEnds: Pag [-10], (2) the heart, and the hands, and its motto, “Not to be ministered unto, but to minister.” Linking the Berry of 1902 and the Berry of the twenty-first century are our commitment to the intellectual, moral, and spiritual growth of our students; our conviction that important lessons are gained from worthwhile work done well; and our belief that serving one’s community is a primary end of higher education. In its second century, Berry proudly remains, as our charter states, “Christian in spirit,” even as we offer our students an environment that is open, friendly, and welcoming to persons of diverse backgrounds. Our institutional history is critical to us. More important, however, is our mission to prepare today ’s students for a world that they—not their teachers —will inhabit. Undergraduates will live well beyondthosewhoinstructthem .Insuchasense,Berry College has always been about tomorrow. In 1902, Martha Berry dreamed of giving her first pupils a future to which they could look forward. All these years later, that dream continues. scott colley President of Berry College x Foreword ...