BUSINESS:
OLDEST OF THE ARTS, NEWEST OF THE PROFESSIONS An address by Or. Asa S. Knowles President, Northeastern University
It is a distinct pleasure for me to be with you today in order to participate in these Dedication Ceremonies. As a former member of the University of Rhode Island faculty, and the first Dean of the School of Business Administration, I have always maintained an active interest in the educational affairs of this campus. As a longtime friend of George Ballentine, I am especially pleased to be asked to take part in ceremonies designed to honor his many years of service to the University as a whole and to the College of Business Administration in particular. The dedication of this new building is further tangible evidence of the. permanency of the business curriculum on the American college campus. In retrospect, it seems difficult to realize that . this bond between business and education is less than 100 years old. When the Wharton School of Finance and Commerce, University of Pennsylvania,the nation's first business school -was established in 1881, America was still politically, ecoi'IOmicalfy and educationally very yount. Ours was a simple agricultural economy, ten western states (excluding Alaska and Hawaii) had yet to be admitted to the union, and only 3.8% of the population attended high school. During the late 1800's and early 1900's, the 路 United States underwent vast changes. In terms of business and education, it was the era during which Americans witnessed the birth of the Industrial Revolution and the comprehensive high school. Both. developments were necessary before business and higher education could meet. The marriage of business and higher education was slow to win acceptance. Higher education was not professionally oriented. The traditional fields of law, medicine, and theology afforded the only exceptions. Business education was of the apprenticeship tradition, and this, together with the profit-oriented nature of the business curriculum, made it difficult for Schools of Business to be accepted in the academic realm. Gradually, however, business and higher education came to realize their need for one another. As a result, a pattern emerged in which the development of business schools paralleled the development of the nation 1 3 economy. Thirty Schools of Business were established between 1881 and American involvement in World War I. Economically speaking, this was a period when American industry was discovering national markets and wartime business was high. From 1917 to 1928, the creation of 46 Schools of Business accompanied the development of the assembly I ine and the problems of mass production. As would be expected, the Stock Market crash of 1929 temporarily stunted the growth of business education, but problems of labor relations and increased government control of business kept the growth of business schools assured. The aftermath of World War II ushered in growing complexities in the business and industrial scene with the result that Schools of Business likewise reached new levels of sophistication . During this era, mathematical methodology become the cornerstone of business and business education.
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