World War I had little effect on the college, and though some people on campus contracted influenza during the Spanish flu epidemic, there were no deaths. In February 1919, YMCA attempted a peaceful takeover of the college, offering to raise an endowment of $500,000 if Antioch would serve as the official national college of YMCA of the USA. YMCA's proposal was received positively by the college's trustees and enacted by a unanimous vote, and Grant Perkins, a YMCA executive, assumed the college's presidency. By May, Perkins had resigned, reporting that he was not prepared to raise the necessary funds.