COLLEGE BOARD OF TRUSTEES His Excellency, GOVERNOR CHARLES A. TEMPLETON Appointed by the Governor JOSEPH W. ALSOP, Avon S. MCLEAN BUCKINGHAM, Watertown .. .Ex-officio ...Ex-officio Term Expires 1925 1925 .1927 1925 ARTHUR F. GREEN, Middlebury 1927 MRS. FRED O. VINTON, Eagleville 1927 WALTER C. WOOD, Woodbridge J. W. ALSOP, H. G. MANCHESTER, ROBERT SCOVILLE, A. B. MEREDITH Experiment Station Committee WALTER C. WOOD, ROBERT SCOVILLE, MRS. F. O. VINTON Extension Committee WALTER C. WOOD, E. E. BROWN, S. M. BUCKINGHAM Administration Committee H. G. MANCHESTER, A. F. GREENE Auditor E. E. BROWN LETTER OF TRANSMITTAL To His Excellency, Charles A. Templeton, Governor of the State of Connecticut: I have the honor to submit herewith the report of the Board of Trustees of the Connecticut Agricultural College for the two fiscal years ended June 30, 1924, and for the two years in other matters ended NoIvember 30, 1924. Very respectfully, WALTER C. WOOD, Secretary of the Board of Trustees. POLICY OF THE CONNECTICUT AGRICULTURAL COLLEGE The purpose and scope of the Connecticut Agricultural College have been determined by the Legislature in the acceptance of the provisions of the Land Grant Act of 1862 for the establishment of a college of agriculture and mechanic arts and by the supplementary acts of the General Assembly: ESTABLISHMENT OF THE COLLEGE. ......the leading object of said College shall be, without excluding General scientific and classical studies, and including military tactics, to teach such Statutes, branches of learning as are related to agriculture and the mechanic arts- Revision of in order to promote the liberal and practical education of the industrial 2123. classes in the several pursuits and professions in life." ESTABLISHMENT OF EXPERIMENT STATION. The General Assembly established the Storrs Experiment Station as a part of the College by accepting the Federal Hatch Act of 1887 and the Adams Act of 1906: "It shall be the object and duty of said Experiment Stations to conduct original researches or verify experiments on the physiology of plants and animals; the diseases to which they are severally subject, with the remedies for the same; the chemical composition of useful plants at their different stages of growth; the comparative advantages of rotative cropping as pursued under the varying series of crops; the capacity of new plants or trees for acclimation; the analysis of soils and water; the chemical composition of manures, natural or artificial, with experiments designed to test the comparative effects on crops of different kinds; the adaptation and value of grasses and forage plants; the composition and digestibility of the different kinds of food for domestic animals; the scientific and economic questions involved in the production of butter and cheese; and such other researches or experiments bearing directly on the agricultural industry of the United States as may in each case be deemed advisable, having due regard to the varying conditions and needs of the respective States and Territories." ESTABLISHMENT OF EXTENSION SERVICE. The General Assembly established the Agricultural Extension Service in connection with the College by the acceptance of the Smith-Lever Act of 1914: 1918, Sec. Spec. Laws, Federal Act of Federal Lever Act. Smith- "That cooperative agricultural extension work shall consist of the giving of instruction and practical demonstration in agriculture and home economics to persons not attending or resident of said colleges in the several communities, and imparting to such persons information on said subjects through field demonstrations, publications, and otherwise; and this work shall be carried on in such manner as may be mutually agreed upon by the Secretary of Agriculture and the State Agricultural College or colleges receiving the benefits of this act." VOCATIONAL EDUCATION IN AGRICULTURE AND HOME ECONOMICS. The General Assembly accepted the provisions of the Federal SmithAct, 1917. Hughes Act of 1917, providing for co-operation with the states in paying the salaries of instructors in certain secondary schools and in the preparation of teachers of agricultural, trade, industrial, and home economic subjects: Pub. Acts 1923, "The Connecticut Agricultural College is designated as the institution to supervise the instruction in agriculture, and is the institution to receive Chap. 171. funds for the preparation of teachers of agriculture and the funds for the training of teaching in home economics." In the acceptance by the General Assembly of the foregoing acts, the purpose and scope of the College have been determined, and in accordance with these provisions the Trustees have developed the institution as it now exists. ORGANIZATION AND PURPOSE CONNECTICUT AGRICULTURAL COLLEGE. The activities of an agricultural college may be grouped under three heads-research, extension service, and resident teaching. These activities supplement each other and should have coordinate development. Experiment Station. The duties of the Storrs Agricultural Experiment Station in conjunction with the Connecticut Experiment Station at New Haven consist of first hand investigation of typical Connecticut farm problems. By agreement, the New Haven Station has taken over research in plant production and the Storrs Station in animal production, based on their relative advantages of location and equipment. The Stations do not overlap or conflict in their work and are under a common administration. This plan has worked out successfully in practice. Increased appropriations are desirable, as the results of investigation are the basis of all agricultural advancement. Extension Service. The duties of the Extension Service are to carry the latest results of scientific research to the farmers and farm homes of the State. The Extension Department maintains a staff of specialists with headquarters at Storrs, the members of which work throughout the State, demonstrating the best practices in Agriculture and Home Economics which the Experiment Station and College have developed. In each county the work is under the direction of a County Agricultural Agent, assisted in some counties by a Home Demonstration Agent and by Boys and Girls Club Leaders. Eight thousand farmers have joined County Farm Bureaus to cooperate with the Extension Service and to make its work more effective. Resident Teaching. In accordance with Federal Acts and state legislation, the College offers instruction in Agriculture, Mechanic Arts, and Home Economics. In agriculture, the college aims to provide instruction equal to that obtainable elsewhere. To this end, not only technical and practical studies are included, but also enough English, economics, sociology and history to equip the graduate for community leadership. In Mechanic Arts, the College is doing no more than to meet the minimum requirements of the Morrill Act. In Home Economics, there is a demand for dieticians in hospitals and institutions, home economic teachers in high schools, and for extension work for which the supply of trained young women is now not adequate. The courses in Home Economics are organized also to provide adequate instruction for the home-maker and for sound leadership in country life. Training young men and women for the improvement of Connecticut Agriculture is recognized as the primary purpose of the College. Efficient food production is vital to the State's industrial life. For the College to turn out efficient farmers is not enough; every graduate who returns to a farm should be equipped to exert an influence for improvement throughout the community. The College student body represents a vertical cross-section of social life. The rich, the well-to-do, and the poor, meet at Storrs on common ground. Expenses at Storrs are much lower than for the average of New England colleges. They must be kept so in order that wealth shall not be a determining factor in registration. Effective enrollment is to be determined by the needs of the State for graduates of the training outlined previously, by the demand of young men and women for the type of instruction offered at Storrs, and by the best employment of the grounds, buildings and equipment which the State has provided at Storrs. The College now enrolls about 500 students, which is the limit of dormitory and classroom accommodations, but not necessarily of the equipment and teaching staff. With an additional dormitory for men and an adequate building for classrooms and laboratories, another 150 students could be taken care of with little additional net operating cost. This figure, |