The Southwestern Historical Quarterly, Volume 86, July 1982 - April, 1983 Page: 253
616 p. : ill. (some col.), maps, ports. ; 23 cm.View a full description of this periodical.
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The University Extension Services
President Vinson, to avoid any possible controversy in the future,
directed that important league decisions be made by the director and
ratified by the executive council and that all league funds, including
those collected from public schools, be administered by the University
auditor. Shurter severed his ties with the extension department when
he took a leave of absence for the 1922-1923 school year, and in 1924
he left the University to establish a School of Citizenship at Southern
Methodist University."9
By 1921 the directorship of extension services had passed into the
hands of a professional, trained specifically for that task. Thomas H.
Shelby accepted the directorship in 1920, with the proviso that he be
granted a leave of absence without pay to complete graduate studies at
the University of Chicago. In the interim, David A. Penick served as
acting director. Besides completing his formal schooling, Shelby vis-
ited state universities and studied extension programs in Wisconsin,
Iowa, Illinois, Indiana, California, New York, and Massachusetts.
When he arrived on the Austin campus in the fall of 1921, he brought
with him a new sense of professionalism. And his service with the De-
partment (later Bureau) of Extension, which lasted until 1951, gave the
programs a stability and continuity that made the University a leader
in extension work.40
Shelby's appointment concluded an almost classic example of pro-
gressive educational history. The University, as most public educa-
tional institutions, accepted as its mandate the need to educate and to
train Americans. The progressive assumption was that the training
would be practical, nonelitist, and would teach participatory democ-
racy. The University, however, was not sure exactly what its mandate
entailed, nor did it have the personnel with professional training to
implement it. Consequently, the early years saw the University admin-
istration struggle with the definition, organization, and role of the De-
Confuse University Interscholastic League with Organization Similar in Name But Pri-
vately Promoted," undated printed circular, Secretary of the Faculty File, "Department
of Extension Controversy," UTPOR; Bedichek to Vinson, Dec. 27, 1921, Bedichek Papers.
a9Shurter to F. W. Graff, Aug. 27, 1921; Vinson to Executive Committee, University In-
terscholastic League, Sept. 22, 1921; Shurter to Vinson, Sept. 27, Dec. 1, 7, 1921; Bedichek
to Vinson, Dec. 12, 1921; W. R. Long to Shurter, June 28, 1922; David A. Penick to Long,
July 7, 1922, Secretary of the Faculty File, "Department of Extension Controversy,"
UTPOR; Shurter to Paul V. Bacon, Mar. 18, 1923; W. A. Cain to Shurter, Jan. 1, 1924;
Shurter to Cain, Jan. 2, 1924; C. O. Barton to Shurter, Jan. 22, 1924, Shurter Papers; Hous-
ton Post, Oct. 25, 1922.
4oVinson to T. H. Shelby, Sept. 4, 1920, June 8, July 20, 1921; Shelby to Vinson, Dec. 24,
1920, Jan. 16, Feb. 15, May 30o, June 29, July 24, 1921, ibid.; Shelby, Development of Ex-
tension Education, 1g.253
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Texas State Historical Association. The Southwestern Historical Quarterly, Volume 86, July 1982 - April, 1983, periodical, 1982/1983; Austin, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth101209/m1/289/: accessed April 18, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Texas State Historical Association.