The Founding of Penn State Behrend

Notes from First Year

Lou Balmer

Notes

1948

01948 Notes from First year
1Lou Balmer I

2= UPSTAIRS of Turnbull still a barn
3= Classrooms "perhaps on order y 20x20
4 24 students
5=
6= The chem lab was still under construction
7when the semester began
8= It has been a five-car garage.
9The North Bay was converted to a classroom
10=There was no blackboard; he got me = a four by
11eight 2 plywood painted with blackboard
12paint.
13= Before classes started the faculty helped to
14get the place organized.
15The faculty assembled the beds for the girls in
16the upstairs domitory.
17They all worked together trying to make everything
18easy for the new school.
19DAVID (Farm U.PK. -ED NoTG. )
20Spoke to thhe new faculty before the classes began
21and told them that.... Their "responsibility as
22members was to teach and relate to the community.

23Balmer II

243. = Girls wore skirts at supper + men who came
25to eat had to wear coats.
26= Telephone receptionist the front door. She
27was also the faculty decretary.
28= Girls had to be in at 9:00 P.M.
29= No new building on campus [But (BAL)
30the dawn the year when we did have an upstairs
31. There weren't enough girls who
32enrolled for the dorm]
33= Lou build us the floor of the path end of the
34 until 1958
35= Lou keeps insisting that it was just a one school
36in the beginning!
37We offered all first with expectations of in age + were
38majoring in all other fields all fields
39The student theater was the begining
40Teachers in English, math, physics, biology
41engineering, chemistry, for. langs.
42Bor Biology build in dog Kennel.
43No tutoring centers for . Went directly to
44faculty

45Balmer III

467. = SPCH CLINIC = base of homes. _They were not students
47They were trained to speak correctly.
48Spch + hearing
498. = Starting faculty salary was $3.000
509 = was not finished until
51They were unhappy on it - - what he
52was in his little room lecturing to students
53= Finance in basement.
5410 Faculty new all the students
5511 Work-day - one day in Spring - Faculty +
56students need to go out to around the
57campus + straighten things up from the winter
58mess.
59The students + faculty wrk worked gladly
6013 He was a member of the chem Dept of the College?
61 was a member of a dept.
62 was automatic after
63No evaluation committees - Head of dept made the
64decision

65Balmer IV

6614 ..... to prevent the effects of the union, faculty
67members had to be in on a decision
68.... as long as faculty members were in that
69sort of thing, they cannot be a member 2 the union.
70a to keep the union out.
71One got tenure after several years......
72The first year - there were a
73 boat.