Charles A. Lory 1909 - 1940 |
University Presidents |
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The son of a farmer, Lory grew to adolescence experiencing agricultural life in Sardis, Ohio. When he was fifteen, his family moved to Colorado and acquired a farm near the Windsor area. There Lory did a significant share of the work on an irrigation ditch project that brought vitally needed moisture to his family's and neighboring farms, gaining invaluable experience in irrigation engineering. In 1893 he became superintendent of a local canal and reservoir. Despite his farming background and an apparent talent for agricultural and irrigation work, he held other ambitions. He was interested in becoming a teacher and enrolled at the State Normal School in Greeley, financing his education by continuing to work as a "ditch rider." After receiving his bachelor of pedagogy degree, he went on to enroll in the scientific course at the University of Colorado in Boulder. There he successfully completed the undergraduate program, and in 1902 obtained a master of science degree. From Boulder, Lory went to Cripple Creek for a two-year stint as the principal of that town's high school, and spent one year teaching physics at the University of Colorado. In 1905 he took charge of the work in physics and electrical engineering at the State Agricultural College in Fort Collins. Becoming president in 1909, Lory embraced a broad-gauge educational philosophy, albeit technically focused. His training had been in an academic discipline rather than religion, and although he viewed a state-supported institution of higher learning as an appropriate place for moral training, he deemed its primary function to be the dissemination of practical knowledge. This outlook, Lory's practical agricultural background, and his distinct personal talents for conciliation enabled him to attract support from individuals and groups. The College was profoundly influenced by Lory's vigorous and distinctive leadership, so much so that to many Coloradoans, he was the College. His commitment to Colorado was genuine and exceptional, and in guiding the destiny of the College at Fort Collins, he remained ever-mindful of a larger obligation to the state. Outreach during his presidency included sponsorship of the Fort Lewis School and establishment of the Cooperative Extension Service under the Smith-Lever Act of 1914. Additionally, in 1918 he instituted a master campus plan that provided for the orderly addition of buildings around the Oval. In December of 1933, the State Board of Agriculture approved a new Code of Operations which reflected the growing maturity of the State Agricultural College. For nearly twenty-five years President Lory had led the College in his own fashion. Under the new Code, deans and the Faculty Council assumed what appeared to be some significant responsibilities. In April of 1938, Lory indicated to the Board that he wished to retire upon reaching his sixty-eighth birthday, on September 25, 1940. |
