The Territorial University’s Fragile Future
A university president argues that education is the bedrock of statehood, but notes that Washington’s investment in the school remains woefully inadequate.
The story, cleaned up
A cleaned-up reading of the newspaper page: spelling and layout repaired, one story lifted off a crowded page. It follows the original closely but it is not a transcription. The original page is below; read it if a detail matters.
A. Q. Strove, President of the University of Washington, delivered an address on the evening of Thursday concerning the education of the youth of our Territory. He argued that education is the problem of transcendent moment. In a country like ours, where the people constitute the government and the laws, the importance of such a vast and far-reaching power being wisely and intelligently exercised becomes clear. It is the duty of our government to provide and adopt the best means for its own safety, strength, and perpetuity. Yet, the meager bounty out of the public treasury, allotted for its support by the legislative wisdom, is altogether inadequate. The University is yet only like an acorn; it requires abundant moisture and protection to grow. We appeal to the sense of justice of the people of this fair city, on whose hillsides this institution nestles, to bestow their encouragement and benefactions.
“The University is yet only like the acorn, which, while carrying within itself the germ of a perfect oak, yet needs the soil so that it may strike deep its roots.”
This 1884 speech highlights the perpetual struggle of the University of Washington to balance its ambition as a major research institution with the erratic nature of state funding. Just as the president warned then of the risks of neglecting the 'heart' of the educational system, modern debates about tuition costs and public subsidies continue to shape who can access higher education in Washington.
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