Volume 8 , Issue 12

Northwestern Normal School President - James E. Ament...

The President of Northwestern Normal School, James E. Ament, was a native of Illinois, and a graduate of the Illinois State Normal school at Normal, Illinois, was superintendent of the city schools at Carrol, Iowa, Rock Island, Ill., and several other cities. Mr. Ament arrived in Alva on September 15, 1897, and at once begun preparations to open school September 20th, that was previously announced by the commercial club through the newspapers. The school opened on that date with an enrollment of 58 young men and women, and a veral members of the commercial club were present to see the beginning. On the first Monday in November, 1897, 100 were enrolled.

In the mean time president Ament was working with the commercial club on a propostion to place before the board of regents and Gov. Barnes on December 1. Mr Ament, with the assistance of Prof. J. J. Brockway, county superintendent, had compiled school statistics that were formidable evidence of the need of a large building here. Mr. Ament contended that we should not intimate that a building to cost less than $100,000 would be sufficient here, and that we should insist that we would fill that large a building with students within five years after its completion. At the board meeting on Dec. 1st, the letting of the contract was put off again. Then for some reason (we will let the reader guess) the secretary of the board received several hundred letters from young people all over Woods and adjoining counties, wanting to know when the new normal building would be completed. Mr. Ament was corresponding with an old friend, John Volk, at Rock Island, Illinois, one of the largest contractors in the state, and when the board again met January 20, 1898, Mr. Volk was present with Mr. Ament; but the plans were changed and enlarged again, and the board advertised for bids to be opened on March 10. The board after considering several bids, let the contract on that date to John Volk & Co., for the building., for $86,018.00. BUT... changes, additions, furniture, etc, cost over $110,000.00 when everything was ready for school work, September 11, 1899.

Other Presidents of Northwestern:

James E. Ament, 1897-1902

T. W. Conway, 1902-1908

Walter Lee Ross, 1908-1910

Grant B. Grumbine, 1910-1916

J. W. Graves, 1916-1917

A. S. Faulkner, 1917-1919

James P. Battenberg, 1919-1928

Walter W .Parker 1928-1933

O. E . Hatcher, 1933-1935

Sabin C. Percefull (Acting President), 1935-1936

Ernest E. Brown, 1936-1939

Chester O. Newlun, 1939-1942

Sabin C. Percefull, 1943-1954

Luther D. Brown, 1955-1956

Jesse W. Martin, 1956-1972

R. William Wygle, 1972-1975

Joe J. Struckle, 1975-2000

Tom McDaniels, 2000-2001

Dr. Paul Beran, 2001 to present

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