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"Harvard is the storehouse of knowledge because the freshmen bring so much in and the graduates take so little out."
– Charles W Eliot, former president of Harvard.
While the original quote is specific to a single institution, this is a
useful quote to store away and adapt as needed!
Charles William Eliot (1834-1926) was president of Harvard for 40 years, from
1869 to 1909. Born to a distinguished New England family, Eliot graduated from
Harvard and then taught math and chemistry there for five years before leaving
to spend two years in Europe where he studied chemistry and teaching methods,
after which he returned to the USA to be a professor at MIT.
In 1869, having attracted favorable attention for his articles on education
reform, he was chosen president of Harvard. During his tenure he radically
altered Harvard, transforming it into a modern university. His best known
reform was to the elective system through which undergraduates could choose from
a wide variety of courses in each field rather than follow a fixed curriculum.
By offering many advanced courses to undergraduates, Eliot was able to employ
outstanding scholars who divided their time between the graduate and
undergraduate schools. Under his guidance, Harvard earned a
reputation for academic excellence and as a leading center for graduate study
and research.
Eliot was also active in the National Education Association (NEA) championing
secondary education, and was a strong influence on the 1892 report that led to
the standardizing of college prep and admissions. He helped found the
College Entrance Examination Board in 1906. He is also responsible for editing the 20-volume The Harvard Classics (1910), "a five-foot shelf" of outstanding books through which those unable to attend college might gain a liberal education.
This quote & biography originally ran in an issue of BookBrowse's membership magazine. Full Membership Features & Benefits.
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