STANFORD PLAN CALLS FOR VAST EXPANSION OF ALASKA UNIVERSITY
“There
seems to be little reason to doubt th at the University of Alaska will be called upon to play a vitally significant role in probing new frontiers
o! knowledge, a group of Stanford planning exper ts who were supported by a $30,000 grant from the Ford Foundation concluded after an intensive study of
the institution.
This grant enabled the University to conduct a study to determine a design for the development of its program
University turned to the School Planning Laboratory of the School of Education at Stanford University for help. The
and plant for the coming years. The
University hired Dr. James D. Mac
piuit.-b.sor oi eaucauon at'
Stanford to coordinate the Alaska
campus' planning studies.
Expert Consultants
Dr. MacConnell’s educational con
sultants were Dr. Glen Kendall,
president of Chico State College,
California; Dr. Raymond G. Schnei
der, associate director of the West
ern Regional Center at Stanford and
Don Kenny, research assistant.
Architects who planned the physi
cal layout of the campus were Mario
Ciampi, Lawrence Lackey and Don
Xnorr of San Francisco.
After first examining the poten
tialities of the state as a whole,
the group of unbiased experts
focused on the people who must
formulate, support and carry out
the master plan. They developed an
educational program which would
best serve the people of Alaska.
New Programs
The experts reported that they
do not expect many new academic
programs to be introduced at the
University between the present time
and that time when there is 5,000
students on campus.
^‘‘There will probably be one or
two additional programs in engi
neering; the first two years of me
chanical engineering by 1961, and a
full four year basis in 1966 or 1967.
Nuclear engineering and perhaps
architecture as separate curricula
should be planned for sometime dur
ing the following decade," the edu
cators stated.
"Since there is much demand
nowadays for the technical institute
type of training, the University may
well be the home of such an insti
tution in the not too distant future,”
the consultants reported.
"The community colleges will
probably also add a 2 year technical
curricula at the same time. Agri
culture, including Forestry, should
be reinstated as an active academic
curriculum as soon as it can be
demonstrated that it will be war
ranted economically,” they added.
No Teaching Changes
The consultants’ studies led them
to add that no revolutionary
changes in teaching methods will
occur. However, they believe that
certain desirable changes will take
place as the enrollment increases,
and as funds become available.
Among the changes that will prob
ably occur is larger lecture sections j
held for section subjects, necessi- |
tating a few large, well equipped |
lecture rooms. Laboratory and quiz |
sections will continue to be rela- >
tively small. The use of closed :
circuit television for on-campus in- i
struction will probably not be a
factor in planning. Movies can be
shown in the standard large iecture
halls, and teaching aids, demonstra
tion equipment, etc., can be used
in standard rooms.
The use of FM radio broadcasting
and the use of teaching tapes to
supplement both classroom and
correspondence study is a distinct
possibility for development.
Varsity Athletics
Varsity athletics will consist of
six major activities: basketball, ice
skating, swimming, rifle, hockey j
and skiing. There will be an in
creased emphasis placed upon win
ter sports in varsity competition
and in the intramural and instruc
tional areas. Gymnastics, track and
field activities may be developed as
minor sports in the future.
The group reported that there
will probably be changes in the :
academic organization to allow for
the formation of schools or college
subgroups.
“The administrative organization,”
the consultants proposed “provides
one college for the fine arts and
humanities field; two colleges for
the social sciences, and three for
the physical sciences.”
Future Development
Later the university might de
velop a general college for the low
er division, a technical institute
and additional colleges in such pro
fessions as nursing, pharmacy and
law. It also might become necessary
in time to establish a separate
school of basic physical sciences,
one of the basic social sciences, and
colleges of business, education, and
engineering.
The consultants said that in ad
dition to the academic colleges pro
posed. the University needs a gen
eral instructional service unit that
would have the status of an aca
demic college. “This would, of
course be the total Statewide serv
ices program,” the experts ex
plained.
“In it would be included all of
the off-campus colleges. If possible.
Agricultural Extension, Home Eco
nomics Extension, and Mining Ex
tension should be included in the
same comprehensive unit. In other
words, this unit would comprise all
of those activities which typically
are included under general exten
sions and public service at each of
the Land Grant Universities.”
Services Emphasized
The consultants emphasized that
“For Alaska, accelerated develop
ment of the Statewide Service pro
gram is vital to the continued strong
support which the University is re
ceiving from the people of the
State.”
Today, 39 years after the begin
ning of the University of Alaska,
Alaskan citizens view the Master
Plan for the long range develop
ment of the institution. The Uni
versity of Alaska Board of Regents,
the president, administrative staff
and faculty who worked to formu
late the plan are confident Alaskans
will lend their support to enable
their University to continue to “be
guided with wisdom and ever grow
in strength and usefulness.”
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