The Industrial Vision for Washington's Colleges
Professor George Lilly, head of the State Agricultural College, outlines a plan to turn higher education toward practical workshop training.
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Professor George Lilly, secretary of the board of regents of the state Agricultural college at Pullman and president of the institution, was at the Grand hotel last night attending a meeting of the regents. 'It is our intention,' he said, 'to introduce and practically apply industrial training; it is the keynote of modern education. The only successful agricultural institutes of learning in the country are those that have become wedded to the system. I think a good part of two years at least should be spent in the workshop, so that every student turned out of our place will possess a practical knowledge of plain wood and iron work.'
“I think a good part of two years at least should be spent in the workshop, so that every student turned out of our place will possess a practical knowledge of plain wood and iron work.”
This reflects the late 19th-century pivot toward vocational education, a precursor to the modern debate over the 'value' of a degree and the push for STEM/technical training in Washington's higher education system today.
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