John E. McGilvrey

Wabash Valley profiles : a series of tributes to hometown heroes who have made a difference

Description:	One typed page including photograph; biography of John Edward McGilvrey Jr., founding president of Kent State University. WABASHP R OFIA hometown h heroes who h difference. A seriies of ttributes tto h f ib t t h have made a diff dVALLEYL E SJohn E. McGilvreyhe descendant of a pioneer Parke County family and an Indiana State alumnus, John Edward McGilvrey Jr. became the founding president of Kent State University. The oldest son of John E. and Mary (Wimmer) McGilvrey, John was born Jan. 8, 1867, in Hollandsburg in Union Township, where his paternal grandparents located in about 1830. After securing an education at country schools, McGilvrey enrolled at Indiana State Normal School, earning a teaching diploma in 1890. During the year following his graduation, John was superintendent of Rosedale public schools and taught classes at his college alma mater. In 1891 he became principal of Paris (Ill.) High School, a position he held for three years. After a year at Indiana University to earn a bachelors degree in philosophy in 1895, he was hired as principal of Freeport (Ill.) High School. On June 6, 1894, he wed his college sweetheart Mary Kelly in Terre Haute. The McGilvreys raised two children: Robert, born June 12, 1902, and Louise, born Oct. 19, 1905. Between 1896 and 1899 John was an assistant professor of education at the University of Illinois in Champaign. In 1899 he became the principal of the Cleveland Normal School, now part of Case Western Reserve University, for nine years. From 1908 to 1910 he was headmaster of the Cleveland City Farm School for Boys in Hudson, Ohio. Alfred E. Bayliss, president of Western Illinois Normal in Macomb, hired McGilvrey to head the department of education in 1910. When Bayliss died unexpectedly during the summer of 1911, McGilvrey was named acting president effective Sept. 1. Meanwhile, he was chosen to serve as the founding president of the new normal school at Kent, Ohio. His services were so desirable he was permitted to reside in Macomb until June 1912, serving as president of two colleges at the same time. During this period he founded extension systems at both schools. Students were allowed to attend classes and secure credits at Kent State before the main campus was ready to accept students. Charged by his board of trustees to build the best normal school in the nation, McGilvrey was an effective and visionary president. A man of proficiency and flair, he worked with the school architect to create a 50-year master plan and zealously set about to meet its goals. His battle with Ohio State University over educational appropriations created tension between the two colleges and, in 1926, the board of trustees decided to terminate Johns services. McGilvrey devoted his abundant energy to Kent Silver Fox Farm, which he and his son established several years earlier. In 1934 the college named McGilvrey president emeritus and asked him to head the alumni relations department. In that capacity he battled to transform Kent State Teachers College into Kent State University, an event which occurred in 1935, and to offer athletic scholarships. He also headed a drive to erect a new science building. McGilvrey Hall, named in his honor, was dedicated on July 20, 1940. He died, at age 78, on Oct. 3, 1945.TAlways Close to HomeMEMBER FDICTerre Haute 238-6000 Brazil 443-4481 Rockville 765-569-3171 Sullivan 268-3331 Clinton 832-3504 Marshall, Illinois 217-826-6311 ... and other cities and towns near you. Also on the web at www.first-online.com
Origin:	2006-04-14
Created By:	McCormick, Mike
Publisher:	Terre Haute Tribune-Star
Source:	http://indianamemory.contentdm.oclc.org/cdm/ref/collection/vchs/id/1142
Collection:	Vigo County Historical Society
Rights:	http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/UND/1.0/
Copyright:	Copyright Undetermined
Subjects:	McGilvrey, John Edward, 1867-1945 Kent State University College administrators College presidents Teachers People Education

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