MORRILL ACT 0F 1862
POWER POINT PRESENTATION
FOR 2012 EXTENSION CONFERENCE PROGRAM
START WITH 3 MINUTE PLUS VIDEO, “ONE MIZZOU”
YOU MAY BE CURIOUS ABOUT WHY I WOULD START A PRESENTATION ON THE POSSIBLE LEGACY OF THE
MORRILL ACT WITH A NEW VIDEO ENTITLED, ONE MIZZOU. APART FROM THE FACT THAT I REALLY LIKE
THE LYRICS AND MELODY AND THAT IT IS HIGH ENERGY, THE MOST IMPORTANT REASON FOR STARTING
WITH THE VIDEO IS TO HIGHLIGHT THE DRAMATIC DIFFERENCE BETWEEN WHAT A LARGE LAND GRANT
UNIVERSITY LOOKS LIKE IN THIS DAY AND AGE FROM THE HUMBLE BEGIINNINGS OF OUR NATION’S
LAND GRANT COLLEGES AND UNIVERSITIES AND THE UNIVERSITY OF MISSOURI IN PARTICULAR.
THANK YOU FOR YOUR KIND INTRODUCTION AND IT IS REALLY A TREAT FOR ME TO COME BEFORE THIS
EXTENSION GATHERING TO SHARE A FEW THOUGHTS ABOUT THE 150TH ANNIVERSARY OF PASSAGE OF
THE MORRILL ACT OF 1862 AND ITS CONTINUING LEGACY. TRUTH BE KNOWN, I SUSPECT THERE ARE
NOT AN INSIGNIFICANT NUMBER OF YOU IN THIS AUDIENCE THAT MAY NEVER HAVE HEARD OF OR
CARED TO BOTHER ABOUT THE IMPLICATIONS OF SOMETHING THAT TOOK PLACE SO MANY YEARS AGO.
YOU ARE APPROPRIATELY GATHERED IN THIS CONFERENCE TO DEAL WITH CHALLENGES AND
OPPORTUNITIES TO PREPARE YOURSELVES FOR THE FUTURE, BUT IT MAY NOT BE SUCH A BAD IDEA TO
TAKE A FEW MOMENTS TO REFLECT ON THE POSSIBLE LEGACY OF ACTIONS TAKEN 150 YEARS AGO
WHEN ABRAHAM LINCOLN WAS PRESIDENT OF THIS COUNTRY.
SLIDE #1 MORRILL’S PICTURE
GIVEN THE HUNDREDS OF PAGES EMBODIED IN MUCH OF TODAY’S FEDERAL LEGISLATION, SECTION 4
OF THE MORRILL ACT, AS SPONSORED BY SENATOR JUSTIN MORRILL OF VERMONT, REPRESENTS A
REMARKABLY SUCCIENCT YET TRANSFORMING DOCUMENT FOR THE AGES.
THE LAND GRANT ACT WAS A POLITICALLY EXPLOSIVE ACT THAT WAS OPPOSED BY MOST
SOUTHERNERS AND BLOCKED UNTIL THE SUCCESSION ACTS LEADING UP TO THE CIVIL WAR ALLOWED A
COALITION OF NORTHERN AND NEWLY ADMITTED WESTERN LEGISLATORS TO PREVAIL AFTER EIGHT
YEARS OF UNSUCCESSFUL EFFORTS TO PASS THE LEGISLATION.
SLIDE 2 MORRILL ACT TEXT
SECTION 4 OF THE MORRILL ACT IN THE PARAGRAPH THAT I HAVE BEFORE YOU SET THE STAGE, IN
SIMPLE
LANGUAGE
FOR THE CREATION OF OUR LAND GRANT SYSTEM OF COLLEGES AND
UNIVERSITIES.
AS STATED, “BY EACH STATE WHICH MAY TAKE AND CLAIM THE BENEFIT OF THIS ACT, TO THE
ENDOWMENT, SUPPORT AND MAINTENANCE OF AT LEAST ONE COLLEGE WHERE THE LEADING OBJECT
SHALL BE, WITHOUT EXCLUDING OTHER SCIENTIFIC AND CLASSICAL STUDIES AND, INCLUDING MILITARY
TACTICS, TO TEACH SUCH BRANCHES OF LEARNING AS ARE RELATED TO AGRICULTURE AND THE
EDUCATION OF THE INDUSTRIAL CLASSES IN THE SEVERAL PURSUITS AND PROFESSIONS IN LIFE.”
JUST AS AN ASIDE, INCLUSION OF THE THREE WORDS, INCLUDING MILITARY TACTICS, WAS A HUGE
ISSUE WHEN CONSIDERING THE COUNTRY WAS IN THE DEPTHS OF ITS GREAT CIVIL WAR AND THE FACT
THAT IT LATER LED TO THE ESTABLISHMENT OF WHAT WE KNOW AS ROTC ON MANY CAMPUSES.
I THINK THOSE AFOREMENTIONED WORDS REPRESENT ONE OF FIVE MOST SIGNIFICANT PIECES OF
NATIONAL LEGILSATION EVER ENACTED IN OUR COUNTY. WITH PASSAGE OF THE ACT CAME THE
MEANS TO SELL FEDERAL LANDS IN SUPPORT OF EACH STATE THAT CHOSE TO PROCEED. ONE WOULD
THINK THAT WOULD BE A FORTHRIGHT STEP AND EASILY ACCOMPLISHED TO IMPLEMENT THIS NEW
LEGISLATION.
OUR HISTORY IN THIS STATE OFTEN HAS SHOWN US THAT AGREEMENT RARELY COMES EASILY LEST WE
MAY EASILY FORGET THAT WE LIVE IN MISSOUREE OR MISSOURAA.
THAT SIMPLE LINGUISTIC
DISTINCTION SAYS MUCH ABOUT OURSELVES AS MISSOURIANS. OUR COLLEAGUE, DR. DARYL HOBBES,
OFTENED REMINDED ME THAT THIS STATE IS WHERE THE NORTH MEETS THE SOUTH AND THE EAST
MEETS THE WEST.
SLIDE 3 CAMPUS PICTURE OF ACADEMIC HALL
WHAT EXACTLY DID THE UNIVERSITY OF MISSOURI AND COLUMBIA LOOK LIKE SOME 150 YEARS AGO?
ACCORDING TO AUTHOR, FRANK STEPHENS, 118 STUDENTS WERE ENROLLED IN 1861 AT THE
UNIVERSITY AT THE OUTSET OF THE CIVIL WAR.
THAT NUMBER INCLUDED SOME 50 PRIMARY
STUDENTS AND 14 STUDENTS WHO RECEIVED AGRICULTURE DIPLOMAS WHICH WE WOULD BE LIKENED
TODAY TO A CREDIT CERTIFICATE RATHER THAN A FULL DIPLOMA.
SLIDE #4 TROOPS IN FRONT OF ACADEMIC HALL
BY DEC, 1861, A REGIMENT OF FEDERAL TROOPS ESTABLISHED LIVING QUARTERS IN ACADEMIC HALL
AND BY EARLY FEBRUARY, 1862, ACADEMIC HALL WAS ALSO USED AS A PRISON TO HOLD SOUTHERN
SYMPATHIZERS.
WAR RELATED INCIDENTS THAT CONTINUED TO PLAGUE THE CAMPUS RANGED FROM AN ATTEMPTED
BURNING OF THE PRESIDENT’S VACANT HOME IN LATE AUGUST, 1862, TO THE UNION ARMY
COMMANDER’S ORDERS FORBIDDING THE SHOOTING OF FERAL PIGS ON THE CAMPUS WHILE AT THE
SAME TIME ORDERING A PARTICULAR SOUTHERN SPY THAT HAD BEEN SEEN ON CAMPUS TO BE SHOT.
BY JULY, 1861, THE UNIVERSITY’S FISCAL BALANCE WAS A PRINCELY $45.76 AND POSSESSED A DEBT OF
$7,000. MICHAEL, YOU THOUGHT BRADY AND YOU HAVE BUDGET CHALLENGES.
DURING 1861 AND EARLY 1862, THE BOARD OF CURATORS ACTUALLY CONDUCTED ITS WORK ILLEGALLY
SINCE GETTING A QUORUM WAS NEARLY IMPOSSIBLE. THINK ABOUT TRYING TO GET A MAJORITY OF
THEN 18 CURATORS TOGETHER IN THE MIDST OF A CIVIL WAR AND WITH A LACK OF ADEQUATE ROADS
AND RAILS.
SLIDE #5 ANOTHER PICTURE OF ADMINSITRATION BUILDING
FACING OVERWHELMING CHALLENGES, THE BOARD FINALLY ON MARCH 23, 1862, VOTED TO CLOSE
THE UNIVERSITY, THE CURATORS FIRED THE FACULTY AND TRIED TO OBTAIN PAYMENTS FOR THE
DAMAGE CAUSED BY THE OCCUPATION OF FEDERAL TROOPS.
AT THAT POINT IN TIME, THE UNIVERSITY RECEIVED NO STATE APPROPRIATION AND TUITION WAS
VIRTUALLY NON-EXISTENT. THE UNIVERSITY’S $123,000 ENDOWMENT WAS ALSO TIED UP BY THE
STATE OF MISSOURI AS COLLATERAL TO PAY FOR THE WAR EFFORT. COULD IT GET MUCH WORSE? THE
UNIVERSITY DID REOPEN ABOUT THIS TIME OF THE YEAR IN 1862 AND SPENT THE REST OF THE WAR
YEARS AS AUTHOR STEPHENS NOTED “CONVALESCING. “
BY THIS TIME 150 YEARS AGO, THE UNIVERSITY WAS REOPENED, THE MORRILL ACT HAD PASSED AND
ALL WERE READY TO PROCEED. NOT REALLY!!! DIDN’T I JUST SAY EARLIER WE LIVE IN MISSOURII OR
MISSOURAA .
IF ONE VISUALIZES THE GEOGRAPHY OF OUR NATION, LAND GRANT STATUS ACCRUED TO MOST
EXISTING STATE COLLEGES AND UNIVERSITIES EAST OF THE MISSISSIPPI RIVER, AT THAT TIME THE WEST
WAS STILL OPENING UP.
THERE WAS A HUE AND CRY FOR THESE NEW UNIVERSITIES FOR THE
WORKING CLASSES TO BE NEW AGRICULTURAL AND MECHANICAL COLLEGES. LOOK AT THE TAPESTRY
OF LAND GRANTS WEST OF THE MISSISSIPPI AND YOU WILL SEE NEW UNIVERSITIES IN PLACES SUCH AS
IOWA ST., KANSAS ST., OKLAHOMA ST., TEXAS A&M, THE DAKOTAS AND ON AND ON.
WELL, WHAT DOES ONE DO IN MISSOURI WHERE YOU HAVE AN EXISTING UNIVERSITY THAT IS SITUATED
WEST OF THE MISSISSIPPI? IT TOOK ONLY 8 MORE YEARS FOR THE STATE LEGISLATURE TO RESOLVE
THIS ISSUE OF WHERE TO PLACE THE LAND GRANT. IT WILL SHOCK YOU TO KNOW THAT ONLY A
POLITICAL DEAL STRUCK AT THE LAST MOMENT IN 1870 RESOLVED THE FIGHT.
WHAT WAS THE BIG PROBLEM? THE CIVIL WAR WAS THE PROBLEM AND THE FACT THAT COLUMBIA
WAS RIGHT IN THE MIDDLE OF LITTLE DIXIE WITH MANY SOUTHERN SYMPATHIZERS, INCLUDING
FACULTY, SERVING AS CONFEDERATE SOLDIERS THAT FOUGHT FOR SUCCESSION. FEELINGS REMAINED
HIGH AMONG THE NORTHERN VICTORS AND THEY SAW NO POINT IN REWARDING THIS COMMUNITY
THAT WAS WITHOUT EVEN A RAILROAD AND ITS INSTITUTION FOR ITS WAYWARD WAYS DURING THE
CONFLICT.
OVER THE COURSE OF THE EIGHT YEARS, EFFORTS SUCH AS ONE IN 1867 WERE MADE TO ESTABLISH
WHAT WE WOULD TODAY CALL A TECHNICAL UNIVERSITY (THINK GEORGIA TECH). BY 1868, EFFORTS
HAD ALSO BEEN MADE TO LOCATE THE AGRICULTURAL COLLEGE EITHER IN THE ST. LOUIS AREA,
SPRINGFIELD OR THE MINING REGION OF SOUTHEAST MISSOURI.
FINALLY, JUST AS FEDERAL DEADLINES FOR ACTION APPROACHED A LEGISLATIVE DEAL WAS STRUCK IN
FEBRUARY, 1870. WERE NOT SUCH A DEAL SUCCESSFULLY CLOSED, THIS YEAR’S CONFERENCE MIGHT
HAVE BEEN HELD IN ONE SOME OTHER MISSOURI LOCALES.
AT THE BEGINNING OF MY REMARKS I HINTED AT THE MORRILL ACT BEING WHAT I BELIEVE TO BE THE
SINGLE MOST IMPORTANT OF FIVE PIECES OF FEDERAL LEGISLATION TO EVER BE PASSED IN SUPPORT
OF HIGHER EDUCATION. ITS LEGACY IS ALL ABOUT ACCESS AND THE DEMOCRATIZATION OF HIGHER
EDUCATION FOR THE RESIDENTS OF OUR COUNTRY AND THIS STATE IN PARTICULAR.
THE OTHER FOUR IMPORTANT LEGISLATIVE INITIATIVES THAT I BELIEVE POSITIVELY RESULTED IN THE
LEGACY OF ACCESS ARE THE SECOND MORRILL ACT OF 1890 WHICH AFFORDED AFRICAN-AMERICANS
EXPANDED OPPORTUNITIES; THE SMITH-LEVER ACT ESTABLISHING THE COOPERATIVE EXTENSION
SYSTEM; THE GI BILL FOLLOWING WWII; AND THE EDUCATIONAL AMENDMENTS ACT OF 1972 WHICH IS
BETTER KNOWN AS TITLE IX, RELATED TO OPPORTUNITY FOR WOMEN IN HIGHER EDUCATION.
SLIDE 6 EXTENSION: THE EARLY YEARS
I AM SHARING THIS REMAINING POWER POINT PRESENTATION, NOT AS THE OFFICIAL HISTORY OF
EXTENSION IN MISSOURI BUT AS A REFLECTION OF MY RESEARCH, THE RESEARCH OF A RETIRED
EXTENSION COLLEAGUE OF OURS, MS. VICKI WHITWORTH, NEWSPAPER ACCOUNTS, AND MY PERSONAL
OBSERVATIONS RELATED TO CHANGING EXTENSION EFFORTS IN MISSOURI.
AS ALREADY INDICATED, EXTENSION’S FOUNDATION WAS ORIGINALLY SET IN PLACE BY CORNERSTONE
PASSAGE, IN 1862, OF THE MORRILL ACT. I WANT TO REITERATE THAT THE LAW IS STILL THE SINGLE
GREATEST CONTRIBUTOR TO THE DEMOCRATIZATION OF HIGHER EDUCATION IN AMERICA IF NOT THE
ENTIRE WORLD. ONE COULD SPEND AN ENTIRE PRESENTATION ON THAT TOPIC ALONE, BUT I BELIEVE
IT SUFFICES TO SAY THAT THE MORRILL ACT SERVES AS THE GREATEST LEGACY OF PUBLIC HIGHER
EDUCATION IN THIS COUNTRY.
SUBSEQUENT FEDERAL LEGISLATION ENTITLED THE HATCH ACT OF 1887 AND SECOND MORRILL ACT OF
1890
FURTHER SET THE STAGE FOR EXTENSION WORK BY CREATING A SUPPORT SYSTEM FOR
AGRICULTURAL RESEARCH AND THE EXPANSION OF LAND GRANT STATUS TO HISTORICALLY BLACK
COLLEGES AND UNIVERSITIES. LINCOLN UNIVERSITY IN MISSOURI WAS DESIGNATED AS ONE SUCH 1890
INSTITUTION.
SLIDE 7 1897-1910: EXTENSION IN MISSOURI
MANY PEOPLE WOULD PRESUPPOSE TODAY THAT THE EARLIEST EXTENSION WORK AT THE UNIVERSITY
HAD ITS ORIGINS IN THE PASSAGE OF THE FEDERAL SMITH-LEVER ACT OF 1914 WHICH SERVES AS THE
STATUTORY BASIS FOR THE NATIONAL COOPERATIVE EXTENSION SYSTEM.
IN FACT, THE EARLIEST EXTENSION WORK IN MISSOURI OCCURRED IN THE LATE 19TH AND EARLY 20TH
CENTURY THROUGH THE UNIVERSITY OF MISSOURI’S COLLEGE OF EDUCATION. FROM ITS EARLIEST
IDENTIFICATION 1N 1869 AS A NORMAL DEPARTMENT AND FORERUNNER OF SUBSEQUENT NORMAL
COLLEGES IN MISSOURI, THE COLLEGE LED THE MOVEMENT TO STRENGTHEN SUPPORT FOR TRAINING
ELEMENTARY AND SECONDARY TEACHERS IN MISSOURI AND PARTICULARLY RURAL MISSOURI.
THE INTERNET DELIVERY OF THAT PERIOD WAS THE TRAIN AND TEACHING CLASSROOMS WERE IN
RAILCARS. BY PARKING THOSE RAILCAR CLASSROOMS ALONG LOCAL SPURS, THE COLLEGE TOOK
TEACHING AND LEARNING THROUGH EXTENSION TO THE PEOPLE IN RURAL COMMUNITIES.
AS EARLY AS 1897, THERE WAS A STANDING COMMITTEE FOR EXTENSION WORK AND BY THE EARLY
1900S, THE CAMPUS WAS PROVIDING NON-CREDIT COURSES IN KANSAS CITY AND ELSEWHERE.
THAT MODEL WAS SUBSEQUENTLY REPLICATED SUCCESSFULLY BY COOPERATIVE EXTENSION FACULTY
AFTER 1914. BY 1910, THE FIRST EXTENSION DIVISION WAS ESTABLISHED AT MU AS THE 10 TH DIVISION
OF THE CAMPUS.
SLIDE 8 MISSOURI EXTENSION SERVICES
BY 1912 THE ROOTS OF THE COOPERATIVE EXTENSION MOVEMENT WERE TAKING HOLD IN MISSOURI
WITH THE NAMING OF THE FIRST COUNTY AGENT. BY 1914 SEVEN COUNTIES HEADQUARTERED
EXTENSION FACULTY IDENTIFIED AS COUNTY AGENTS. YOU CAN SEE THAT THE FIRST AGENTS WERE ALL
MEN AND A BROAD RANGE OF ACADEMIC AND EDUCATION EXPECTATIONS WERE TIED TO THE JOB.
SLIDE #9 MISSOURI EXTENSION SERVICES
PASSAGE OF THE SMITH-LEVER ACT SET IN PLACE A NATIONAL DELIVERY SYSTEM THAT REFLECTED AN
EXTENSION MISSION AT THE UNIVERSITY OF MISSOURI AND OTHER LAND GRANTS.
IN THOSE EARLIEST YEARS, HOME ECONOMICS AND BOYS & GIRLS CLUBS ALSO BECAME THE FABRIC OF
EXTENSION WORK. WITH THE EXPANSION OF MISSION AND ATTENTION TO NEW AREAS OF EMPHASIS
EVENTUALLY CAME THE EVENTUAL HIRING OF WOMEN.
SLIDE 10 EXTENSION AT WORK
BY TODAY’S UNDERSTANDING OF EXTENSION WORK, THE CHALLENGES FOR EARLY EXTENSION
EDUCATORS LOOK DISTANT AND FAR REMOVED FROM TODAY’S WORLD.
EFFORTS TO STEM HOG CHOLERA, THE NEED TO BRING RURAL ELECTRIFICATION TO FARM FAMILIES
AND COMMUNITIES, AND EFFORTS TO INCREASE LIVESTOCK AND CROP PRODUCTION FROM WOEFUL
LEVELS ARE BUT A FEW EXAMPLES OF BRINGING UNIVERSITY BASED RESEARCH EFFORTS TO THE
WORKING CLASSES.
SLIDE #11 EXTENSION AT WORK
IT BEARS NOTING THAT IN THE PRE-WORLD WAR II YEARS, THE EMPLOYMENT OF FEMALE COUNTY
AGENTS IN MISSOURI WAS INITIATED WITHIN EXTENSION. WHILE I AM SURE THE FEMALE AGENTS
WERE SELF-SUFFICIENT IN THEIR OWN MINDS, THOSE AGENTS STILL FACED THE REALITY OF LOSING
THEIR EMPLOYMENT STATUS UPON THE OCCASION OF GETTING MARRIED AND NEEDED TO TRAVEL
WITH THE MALE COUNTY AGENT WITHIN THE COUNTY.
WHILE THE EXTENSION WORLD HAS OBVIOUSLY CHANGED IN MANY WAYS, IT IS INTERESTING TO NOTE
THAT AT THE FIRST ANNUAL CONFERENCE OF COOPERATIVE EXTENSION AGENTS IN 1915, THE TWO
BIGGEST ISSUES IDENTIFIED BY THE AGENTS, ALL SEVEN OR SO OF THEM, WERE (1) LOW PAY AND (2)
TOO MUCH CAMPUS DIRECTED PROGRAMMING.. I WILL LET EACH OF YOU DECIDE HOW MUCH SOME
THINGS CHANGE OR NOT OVER TIME.
SLIDE 12 EXTENSION WAR EFFORT
AS AMERICA WAS DRAWN INTO WORLD WAR I IN 1917-18, THE EXTENSION MISSION AGAIN WAS
REFOCUSED ON SUPPORTING THE WAR EFFORT IN PARTICULAR AREAS SUCH AS INCREASED VEGETABLE
GARDENING AS WELL AS TEACHING PRESERVING AND CANNING OF THOSE CROPS TO SUPPORT THE
WAR EFFORT.
SLIDE 13 MOBILE CLASSROOMS
AS PREVIOUSLY INDICATED, THE MOBILE CLASSROOMS OF THE EARLIEST YEARS WERE RAIL CARS
PARKED ON A LOCAL RAIL SPUR.
THEY WERE SUPPLANTED BY OTHER DISTANCE EDUCATION
STRATEGIES OVER THE DECADES THAT RANGED FROM AUTOMOBILE TRAVEL, FACULTY FLYING IN
UNIVERSITY AIRPLANES TO TEACH IN RURAL COMMUNITIES, TO TODAY’S WEB-BASED DIGITAL
TEACHING PLATFORMS OF THE WORLD WIDE WEB THAT INCLUDE E-EXTENSION.
SLIDE 14 EXTENSION AT WORK
THE HALLMARK OF EXTENSION EDUCATION HAS ALWAYS BEEN GROUNDED IN THE PRACTICAL
APPLICATION OF RESEARCH IN THE DAY TO DAY SETTING OF MISSOURI RESIDENTS.
FIELD
DEMONSTRATIONS IN AGRICULTURE AND THE FORMATION OF GIRLS SEWING CLUBS AND OTHER
SIMILAR EFFORTS THAT LEAD TO OUR CURRENT 4-H YOUTH PROGRAMS ARE BUT TWO EXAMPLES OF
TAKING EXTENSION EDUCATION TO THE HOME AND WORKPLACE.
SLIDE 15 WE HAVE BEEN KNOWN AS…..
BOARD OF CURATORS ACTION IN 1910 ESTABLISHED THE FIRST GENERAL EXTENSION DIVISION. SINCE
THAT TIME THE BRAND IDENTITY OF UNIVERSITY OF MISSOURI EXTENSION’S EFFORTS IN CONTINUING
EDUCATION, DISTANCE EDUCATION, ENGAGEMENT, COOPERATIVE EXTENSION AND OTHER ALLIED
EFFORTS HAS ENCOMPASSED AT LEAST A HALF DOZEN NAMES OVER THE DECADES.
ATTEMPTING TO BRAND A BROAD BASED DELIVERY MISSION WITH AN ANNUAL BUDGET OF
APPROXIMATELY $80 MILLION IS ANALYGOUS TO THE SAME CHALLENGES FACING A LARGE CORPORATE
STRUCTURE WITH MANY WELL KNOWN SUB-BRANDS. ALL TOO OFTEN, EXTENSION IS KNOWN BY ITS
SIX PROGRAM AREAS OF AGRICULTURE, BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT, COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT,
CONTINUING EDUCATION, HUMAN ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES AND 4-H YOUTH THAN BY ITS CURRENT
BRAND NAME; UNIVERSITY OF MISSOURI EXTENSION.
IN MY MIND, THE MOST IMPORTANT QUESTION THAT COMES UP IN THESE TYPES OF DISCUSSIONS IS
WHETHER EXTENSION IS AN ORGANIZATION OR MISSION OF THE UNIVERSITY. MY PERSONAL ANSWER
TO THAT “OR” QUESTION HAS ALWAYS BEEN “YES”, IT IS BOTH A NAMED BRAND IDENTITY FOR A
CRITICAL ACADEMIC UNIT OF THE UNIVERSITY OF MISSOURI BUT MORE IMPORTANTLY IT IS A MISSION
PARTNER WITH TEACHING, RESEARCH AND ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT
SLIDE 16 1930S-1950s
WITHIN THE DECADES OF THE 30S THROUGH 50S QUANTUM LEAPS IN FOOD AND FIBER RESEARCH
BEGAN TO DIFFERENTIATE THE U.S. FROM ITS COUNTERPART NATIONS OF THE WORLD. WITH THE
ONSET OF THE GREAT DEPRESSION AND SUBSEQUENTLY WORLD WAR II AND THE KOREAN CONFLICT,
THE NEEDS FOR MORE EFFECTIVE AND EFFICIENT AGRICULTURAL PRACTICES WERE FOREMOST ISSUES
IN RURAL AMERICA AND EXTENSION WAS THE PREIMARY DELIVERY MECHANISM FOR THESE FAR
REACHING RESEARCH EFFORTS WITH MISSOURI FARM FAMILIES.
WITH THE CURRENT YEAR’S WEATHER CHALLENGES IN THE STATE, ACROSS THE COUNTY AND INDEED
THE WORLD, THE NEED FOR THE EXTENSION INTERFACE REMAINS VITALLY IMPORTANT.
SLIDE 17 1957
IN THE MIDST OF THIS RESEARCH AND EXTENSION RENAISSANCE, A 1957 NATIONAL STUDY TEAM WAS
CONVENED BY THE US DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE TO STUDY THE COOPERATIVE EXTENSION
SYSTEM.
THE STUDY’S GOAL WAS TO EXAMINE THE FUTURE MISSION AND ORGANIZATION OF THE EXTENSION
SYSTEM ACROSS THE COUNTRY.
ONE OF ITS NOTEWORTHY PARTICIPANTS WAS DR. C. BRICE
RATCHFORD FROM NORTH CAROLINA STATE UNIVERSITY. THE FINDINGS OF THAT STUDY, COUPLED,
WITH A KEY HIRE OF DR. RATCHFORD IN MISSOURI IN 1959CHANGED THE COURSE OF EXTENSION
HISTORY IN MISSOURI.
SLIDE 18 1957-1970
WITH THE HIRING OF DR. RATCHFORD AS VICE PRESIDENT FOR EXTENSION IN MISSOURI, CAME
SOMEONE WHO POSSESSED A BROAD VISION OF EXTENSION THAT WAS OUTLINED IN THE 1957
NATIONAL STUDY.
DURING HIS TENURE AS VICE PRESIDENT AND SUBSEQUENTLY PRESIDENT OF THE UNIVERSITY OF
MISSOURI SYSTEM, CHANGE BECAME THE ORDER OF THE DAY.
SLIDES 19 REORGANIZED ADMINISTRATIVE STRUCTURE AND LEADERSHIP
JUST A FEW OF THE SEMINAL CHANGES THAT WERE IMPLEMENTED DURING THOSE YEARS ARE
ENUMERATED ON THIS POWER POINT SLIDE. THESE ADMINISTRATIVE AND ACADEMIC PROGRAM
CHANGES MAY SEEM MUNDANE SOME 50 YEARS LATER BUT THEY WERE CULTURE CHANGING AT THAT
POINT IN TIME.
THERE ARE MANY LAND GRANT UNIVERSITIES SOME FIVE DECADES LATER THAT ARE STRUGGLING TO
REPLICATE SOME OF THESE SAME ADMINISTRATIVE AND PROGRAMMATIC CHANGES IN THE FACE OF
AN EVER CHANGING WORLD.
SLIDE 20 1960-CREATED UNIVERSITY EXTENSION
50 YEARS AGO, A SINGLE ADMINISTRATIVE STRUCTURE FOR EXTENSION AND CONTINUING EDUCATION
WAS CREATED ON THE COLUMBIA CAMPUS.
UNLIKE MANY UNIVERSITIES WHERE DUPLICATIVE
ADMINISTRATIVE SUPPORT STRUCTURES STILL EXIST, THE UNIVERSITY OF MISSOURI’S SINGLE,
CENTRALIZED OVERSIGHT STRUCTURE AVOIDS COSTLY REDUNDANCY IN ADMINISTRATION.
BY HAVING ADMINISTRATIVE COSTS OF THREE PERCENT AND STATEWIDE PROGRAM ADMINISTRATIVE
COSTS OF SIX PERCENT OF A TOTAL 2012 OF BUDGET OF MORE THAN $80 MILLION, EXTENSION IN
MISSOURI IS ABLE TO MAXIMIZE ITS COMMITMENT TO EDUCATIONAL EFFORTS.
THE IDEAS OF EXTENSION FACULTY ANCHORED IN ACADEMIC UNITS, THE CREATION OF (1) MULTICOUNTY FACULTY ASSIGNMENTS AND PROGRAM DELIVERY AND (2) WHAT WERE NEW PROGRAMMING
EFFORTS IN BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT AND COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT ARE STILL CHALLENGES FOR
MANY OF TODAY’S LAND GRANTS TO ASSUME.
SLIDE 21 1970S Forward
BY THE EARLY 1970S THE TRADITIONAL EXTENSION FUNDING MECHANISM BEGAN TO EVOLVE FROM
THE METAPHOR OF THE THREE LEGGED STOOL OF FEDERAL, STATE AND COUNTY FUNDING.
TODAY EXTENSION IN MISSOURI CAN EASILY BE SEEN AS BEING SUPPORTED BY A FIVE LEGGED STOOL
THAT NOW INCLUDES NOT ONLY THE IMPORTANT ORIGINAL FUNDING PARTNERS BUT SUBSTANTIALLY
BENEFITS FROM THE ADDITION OF MORE THAN $28.3 MILLION IN ANNUAL GRANTS AND CONTRACTS
OF $26.0 MILLION IN CONTINUING EDUCATION FEES, SALES AND SERVICES.
A SIXTH STOOL LEG OF FUNDING IS EMERGING ON BEHALF OF EXTENSION IN A GROWING GIFT AND
ENDOWMENT STREAM THAT TOTALLED $303,000 IN 2012 FROM TOTAL SUMMARY GIVING OF MORE
THAN $3.1 MILLION.
JUST AS ITS PARENT INSTITUTION HAS COMPLETED A RELATIVELY RECENT MULTI-YEAR $1 BILLION
CAMPAIGN, EXTENSION IS NOW SUPPORTING ITS LONG TERM FUTURE THROUGH
ITS NEW
PARTNERSHIPS WITH EXTENSION DONORS.
SLIDE 22 URBANIZING AND EXTENDING EXTENSION’S ACADEMIC BASE
AN IMPORTANT FEATURE OF THE PAST 4 DECADES OF EXTENSION WORK HAS BEEN TIED TO THE
DEVELOPMENT OF URBAN CAMPUSES IN ST. LOUIS AND KANSAS CITY AS WELL AS EXTENDING
ACADEMIC BASES THROUGH MISSOURI S&T AT ROLLA AND WORKING COOPERATIVELY WITH OUR 1890
INSTITUTION, LINCOLN UNIVERSITY.
THE UNIQUE NEEDS OF RESIDENT TAXPAYERS IN URBAN AREAS CONTINUE TO CHALLENGE EXTENSION
AND ALL OF ITS COOPERATORS TO FIND THE MOST EFFECTIVE STRATEGIES AND PROGRAMS TO MEET
THE NEEDS OF TWO-THIRDS OF OUR STATE’S POPULATION.
SLIDE 23 PHILOSOPHICAL ISSUES
OVER ITS LONG HISTORY, UNIVERSITY OF MISSOURI EXTENSION HAS ALWAYS BEEN FACED WITH THE
NEED TO INITIATE CHANGE AS A REFLECTION OF CHANGES IN THE LIVES OF MISSOURIANS. WHILE
CONTENTIOUS AT TIMES, CHANGE HAS RESULTED IN CONTINUOUS ORGANIZATIONAL RENEWAL.
EXTENSION’S MISSION HAS SERVED MISSOURIANS WELL OVER TIME BUT THE MEANS AND STRATEGIES
TO ACCOMPLISH ITS MISSION IS RELFECTIVE OF THE STATEMENT THAT “THE ONLY REAL CONSTANT IS
CHANGE ITSELF”.
FIVE OF THE MANY POSSIBLE ISSUES ASSOCIATED WITH CHANGE ARE IDENTIFIED IN THIS
PRESENTATION TO REMIND US THAT EXTENSION CAN EXPECT TO FACE FUTURE, YET UNNAMED ISSUES,
AS IT EVOLVES AS THE PRIMARY REPRESENTATION OF THE ENGAGED FLAGSHIP INSTITUTION IN THE
STATE OF MISSOURI;
IN RECOGNITION OF CELEBRATING THIS WONDEROUS LEGACY OF THE MORRILL ACT, I HOPE IN SOME
SMALL WAY I HAVE CONTRIBUTED TO AN UNDERSTANDING OF THE 150 YEARS OF HISTORY THAT
SERVES AS A FOUNDATION FOR WHERE UNIVERSITY OF MISSOURI EXTENSION AND EACH OF YOU ARE
TODAY.
WHILE HISTORY IS SOMETIMES CONTEXTUALLY REMOTE, OUR PREDECESSORS MADE THIS GATHERING
POSSIBLE FOR THE WORK THAT YOU HAVE ADDRESSED IN THIS CONFERENCE. IT ALSO IS THE REASON
THAT EXTENSION WILL ALWAYS BE THE BEST EVIDENCE OF A RELEVANT AND CONTINUING LEGACY OF
THE MORRILL ACT.
IN A COUNTRY WHERE WE ARE BESET BY OBESITY AND HUNGER AT THE SAME TIME, WHERE CHANGING
GLOBAL WEATHER PATTERNS THREATEN CURRENT FOOD AND FIBER PRODUCTION PATTERNS, WHERE
COMMUNITIES FACE INCREASING INSTANCES OF CRUMBLING PHYSICAL AND SOCIAL INFRASTRUCTURE,
WHERE SMALL ENTREPRENEURS STRUGGLE TO FIND FINANCIAL CAPITAL TO BUILD THEIR COMPANIES,
AND WHERE THE FABRIC OF THE FAMILY AND OUR YOUTH ARE UNDER DAY TO DAY PRESSURE, THE
NEED FOR EXTENSION REMAINS AS RELEVANT AS EVER.
THANK YOU FOR ALLOWING ME TO SHARE MY THOUGHTS WITH YOU ABOUT THE MORRILL ACT, ITS
LEGACY OF UNIVERSITY OF MISSOURI EXTENSION AND ITS RELEVANCE FOR TODAY AND TOMORROW.
PLEASE KNOW THAT UNIVERSITY OF MISSOURI EXTENSION WILL ALWAYS BE A SPECIAL PART OF MY
LIFE.