Grad. School of Education Drops One Plan; Adopts Administration Idea

This year's four fellows at, the Graduate School of Education will be the last, as the old nemesis, lack of funds, has stymied the School's Nieman-like program for educators. At the same time, Dean David Keppel announced the formation of a new "Administration" plan. The plan, which will go into effect this month, provides an Ed.D. in Administration without the necessity of a thesis, for 20 handpicked educational administrators.

Four years ago the Grant Foundation set aside funds to bring the "master teacher" to Harvard for a year of unrestricted study in the field of education. The recipients of the awards were to be allowed "free access to the resources of the University, with a program individually designed, under an adviser in the Faculty of Education. . . . If he should later desire to pursue the doctorate program it is to be expected that most of his year's work will have been appropriate, but it is not anticipated that these funds will be used to encourage future study."

Since 1948 the fellowship program has cost some $68,000. Graduate School officials have not yet made public the reason for the Grant Foundation's withdrawal of funds.

The new administration plan is aimed at developing the "master practitioner in the field of educational administration". Because all of the students in the program will have to take a sizeable cut in their incomes in order to study at Harvard, the University is working on a plan where by the school system in each student's community will pay him half of his customary salary and the Graduate School will make up the difference.

Although the student does not have to write a doctoral thesis under the new program, he must do field work in problems of education in addition to taking regular courses. His degree will depend on the evaluation of a University-wide Committee on the Center for Field Studies.

"The capstone of the new program is not a doctoral dissertation, nor does completion of a specified number of approved courses constitute fulfilment of degree requirements. Instead the new program emphasizes a core of responsible field experiences for the individual student. . . . He does not simply talk about problems of administration; he also works with them. And he will be evaluated chiefly as an administrator in action."

He will do field work either as a staff member of a local school system or as part of a social-science research team.

The students have been divided into two groups according to their previous administrative experience. One is composed of experienced administrators, school system superintendents, principals, etc.

The second will be made up of "persons with little or no administrative experience, but who are regarded as men and women of superior administrative promise."

Dean Keppel hopes that the fellowship program may someday be reintroduced under the same system as that of the administration plan--with the teacher's community contributing to his studies.

The four fellows selected for '52-'53 are Herbert I. Bruning, Principal of Emporia High School, Emporia, Kansas; Frank G. Dickey, Dean of the College of Education, University of Kentucky; John W. Hanson, Instructor in Education at University High School, Urbana, Ill.; and Douglas B. Roberts, Assistant Superintendent of Schools in Westport, Conn.