Not Just for Teachers
East Carolina College, 1951-1967
Brochure for the third of four exhibits created for the ECU Centennial. The exhibit will be on display in the Special Collections Department from February to September 2007. See also items which were featured on display:
Not Just for Teachers Anymore --
East Carolina College
1951-1967
East Carolina College
East Carolina Teachers College came to later evolve into an entirely different institution all together. Given the post-war demands for more and varied types of academic degree programs, the administration decided to alter the curriculum from that of a teacher preparatory college to a truly multi-disciplinary college accommodating a large gambit of professional interests. In response to this strategic curriculum development, the school was renamed East Carolina College in 1951.
To aid this large expansion of programming, the physical campus had to adapt to a growing student population and a demand for even more academic facilities. Three new dormitories (Garrett, Aycock, Fleming, Belk, and Greene) were constructed to house the ever expanding student enrollment. College Stadium was replaced in 1963 by the new 10,000 seat Ficklen Stadium on Charles Boulevard, and Minges Coliseum was constructed in 1966 for basketball and pool facilities. Additional classroom and lab buildings were added to house the new programs (Bloxton House, 1952: Home Management; Erwin, 1952: Faculty Apartments; Joyner Library, 1954; Flanagan Sylvan Theatre, 1956; "New" Austin, 1964: Mathematics, Technical Services; Speight, 1965: Education and Psychology; A.J. Fletcher Music Center, 1966). Millions of dollars were spent preparing the campus for its new reincarnation.
After WWII, student enrollment skyrocketed. Access to financial assistance through the GI Bill and increased program offerings helped fuel the advancement of East Carolina College. In 1960, ECC saw enrollment numbers jump to over 5,100 students. Students pouring into the college could now pursue degrees in Nursing (opened 1960), Business (organized 1960), Art and Music (organized 1962), Education (organized 1963), or from one of the many new departments in the School of Arts and Sciences (1964).
During its span as East Carolina College, the institution experienced many groundbreaking milestones. The College celebrated its 50th anniversary in 1958. The athletics department added new sports (Rowing, Lacrosse, and Soccer), and the football team won the Tangerine Bowl twice (1964, 1965). John F. Kennedy visited ECC on his presidential campaign trail in 1960, addressing several rallies on campus to numbers well over 10,000. Hubert Walters (1965) and Laura Leary (1966) were the first African-American graduates of East Carolina, graduate and undergraduate respectively.
As the college continued to grow in the 1960s, administrators realized that the institution would again have to reinvent itself to keep up. As 1966 saw an operating budget of over 10 million dollars and upwards of 9,000 students, the fight for university status reached a climax. The NC Senate finally granted university status to the rural college on June 29, 1967. Those who had fought so diligently for years to bring about this change were finally rewarded. The next reincarnation of East Carolina had begun.
Did You Know . . . ?Tuition for students at ECC stayed around $450.00 for the academic year in the '50s and '60s.
ECC’s first mascot came on the scene in 1958. A Great Dane named Buc (short for Buccaneer) was a featured part of athletic events.
East Carolina had its own television and radio shows throughout the '60s. The more than 40 hours of airtime a week provided the state’s viewers and listeners with information about all aspects of ECC life and events.
ECC began efforts to preserve local history. Dr. Charles Price, Dr. Fred Ragan, and Dr. Herbert Paschal, Jr. worked on the project to procure letters, diaries, oral histories, etc. This modest beginning is now known as the East Carolina Manuscript Collection.
Dr. Messick made an address to 400 students in 1959. What was the subject of this assembly?? The appropriate way to kiss your special someone goodnight.
ECC crowned its first homecoming queen on Oct. 10, 1953. Who was the lovely lady? Miss Kitty Gerringer Brinson.
Interesting Facts . . .
*ECC students got to see dozens of popular artists perform in concert on campus. Some included: Ray Charles, The Platters, Louis Armstrong.
*ECC was noted for winning on the field—not one, but two consecutive Tangerine Bowl victories (1964, 1965), and the NAIA National Championship was won by the 1961 Pirate baseball team.
*The College’s first Parent’s Weekend was hosted in 1966.
*When constructed in 1964, Fletcher Dorm was the tallest structure in Greenville. Residents referred to it as “the skyscraper”.
*The Summer Theatre program’s first performance was West Side Story, July 6, 1964.
*The first televised East Carolina athletic event was the 1959 Homecoming game on WNCT.
*When SGA officials began discussions of a college mascot in 1958, animals that were considered included a donkey, a chimpanzee, a parrot, a wild cat, and a great dane.
East Carolina Coat of ArmsDesigned in the '60s, our coat of arms or, as many refer to it, "The Key" represents our educational training heritage while looking forward to our destiny as graduates of ECC (and now ECU) to go forth and touch the world .
I would like to offer a special thanks to Suellyn Lathrop, University Archivist, for her much needed assistance in navigating the materials in Archives for this exhibit. Her patience, knowledge, and resourcefulness were a tremendous asset in developing this exhibit.CREDITS
- Exhibit Curator: Adrienne Dunning Rea
SOURCES
- All exhibit items and photos are from the University Archives collections of Joyner Library unless otherwise noted.
FOR MORE INFORMATIONCall: 252-328-6671 or 2661
http://www.ecu.edu/cs-lib/spclcoll/index.cfm
Individuals with disabilities, requesting accommodations under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), should contact the Department for Disability Support Services at (252) 328-6799 (V) or (252) 328-0899 (TTY)
