Browse Exhibits (11 total)

Bears Breaking Ground: A History of Construction, Destruction, and Renovation at Ursinus College aims to educate the public about the history of Ursinus buildings. The group decided to pick three buildings that are personally connected to our lives on campus. The three buildings are currently known as Myrin Library, Bomberger Memorial Hall and the Berman Museum of Art. The project is just the initial step in creating a full history of the buildings on campus. Although each building was built at a different time in the college’s history, two major dates of renovation have emerged through our research, the 1970s and the mid 2000s. 

Myrin Library was built in 1970. It stands where Freeland Seminary, later Freeland, Stein and Derr Halls, stood. Freeland Seminary was built in 1848 and was incorporated into Ursinus’s space after its founding in 1871. Stein and Derr Halls were added later to include dormitory and cafeteria space on campus. In 1965 the building was declared to be a fire hazard, no longer big enough to house the student population of Ursinus and infected with different types of vermin. It was destroyed that same year. Since Freeland Hall and Myrin Library are geographically related, they have been placed first since Freeland Hall was the oldest building (of our three) to be associated with Ursinus. Under the Freeland Hall and Myrin Library tab, there is information about Freeland Seminary, Freeland Hall, Myrin Library’s construction, the Book Walk, and Myrin Library’s dedication.

Bomberger Memorial Hall is still the same building under the same name, though it is generally shortened to Bomberger Hall. Built in 1891 from a generous donation by Robert Patterson, it is named in memory of one of the college's founders and the first president of the college, John Henry Augustus Bomberger. It is the oldest building still in use on campus, with the exteriors integrity being kept in its signature Romanesque architectural style. It has undergone renovations on its interior in the 1920s and 1970s to keep the building useable and up to the building code of the time. The only major and visible exterior renovation Bomberger has had was in 2006, with the north entrance being changed to a handicap accessible entrance/exit and offices for Career and Professional Development and the Education Department. Under the Bomberger Memorial Hall tab, there is information about the construction of Bomberger Hall, a few prominent rooms of the building, particularly its main chapel, the various renovations that have been done in its interior and exterior, and the organs of Ursinus College.

The Berman Museum have been known by three different names. It was initially built as the Alumni Memorial Library (AML) in 1921 to honor the Ursinus students killed during World War II. In 1973, the building transitioned for a short time into being the College Union. By the gift of Philip and Muriel Berman, the Berman Museum was established 1989 and lives on this campus to this day. It is still the original building built in 1921, but has had extensive renovations additions over the last 95 years. Under the AML, College Union, and Berman Museum of Art tab, there is information about fundraising to build the AML, the AML itself, the College Union, and The Philip and Muriel Berman Museum of Art.

Each section holds specific details about each building’s evolution in the last 123 years of Ursinus history and include pictures from various decades, newspaper articles from The Ursinus Weekly/The Grizzly, and articles from The Ursinus Bulletin. All this information and originals can be found in Ursinusiana. The hope is that the project will be continued by future students and will include a history of all buildings on campus.

We would like to take a moment to extend our gratitude to all the people who have helped us through this project. Thank you to the U-Imagine Center, Dr. Susanna Throop, Dr. Kara McShane, Mrs. Carolyn Weigel, Mr. Andrew Prock and everyone else who has given us advice on our journey through this project. We greatly appreciate all your support. 

All pictures and articles are from Ursinusiana, the Ursinus College Archive, and the Ursinus Digital Commons. They are free to private and educational use.

What is social life, who it has involved, and how have these social interactions changed over time at Ursinus College? This project specifically explores the reasons for the shift to coeducation, how and why women carved out their own spaces on campus, and finally the ways in which both men and women did and did not coexist in their social lives between 1880 and 1907. Materials from the Ursinusiana Collection and the Ursinus Archives, especially yearbooks, newspapers, and photographs, reveal the early years of social life at Ursinus for women. In particular, this project shows that women joining a newly coeducational school not only had to prove their academic worth, but also navigated the difficulties of social life by joining established spaces or creating their own through clubs, organizations, sports, housing, and other interactions. Hopefully, this project is not an end in itself, but rather, the beginning of further dialogue about our students’ diverse backgrounds and the ways that these backgrounds manifest in social experiences at Ursinus College.

I would like to thank all the people who have helped me through this summer fellows project. Thank you to Dr. Susanna Throop and Dr. Kara McShane for being wonderful advisors and all the work they have done to make this project the best it could be. Thank you to Mrs. Carolyn Weigel and Mr. Andrew Prock for their amazing help in the archives and digitizing everything. And thank you to everyone else who have guided this project or assisted me in any way shape or form on this project. I appreciate all that you've done!

Welcome!

Bears With Booze: A History of the Creation, Enforcement, and Reformation of Alcohol Policies at Ursinus College is a student-created and organized digital exhibit archiving the history of Ursinus College's tumultuous relationship with alcohol laws, customs, and culture.

From its creation, Ursinus College has maintained a controversial reputation in Montgomery County as an icon of liberal reformation in an demographical ocean of deep political and religious conservatism. Ursinus grew out of a period of intense theological discussion, debate, and change. The progressive and reformative ethics, opinions, and operations of the original benefactors and creators of the Ursinus identity - reconstructionist members of the Mercersburg Seminary - have endured history, and have reflected directly into the aura of determination, nobility, and extraordinary democracy in which Ursinus resides today.

Our website is organized into four separate categories:

1. The Historical Narrative: A navigatable library of various media, all together illustrating and narrating the events of most tumultious and formative era of Ursinus history.
   
   
2. The Modern Perspective: A navigatable library of various media, all together illustrating the state, style, and method of today's substance administration on the Ursinus campus.
   
   
3. Photo galleries: High-resolution navigatable galleries of historically significant photographs and documents.
   
   
4. Interactive features: Engaging, interactive exhibits for if you want to take a deeper delve into the complexities of Ursinus College's alcohol policy!

Credits

Dan Berger, Kasey Chatburn, Sam Mamber, & Alessandra Psomaras

The African American and Africana Studies (AAAS) program is a recent addition to Ursinus College, as new as 2004. The program offers a minor to students interested in exploring the African Diaspora in the U.S. and beyond. In this exhibit, we will explore the growth of one of the college's most interdisciplinary programs. This will include a full history of the AAAS program beginning with student intrigue and courses prior to 2004, past and current courses and professors of the program, and the impact of the program on the culture and student life at Ursinus including SPINT housing, and program oriented events and trips.

Before the African American and Africana Studies program was official at Ursinus; there were many demands for more educational courses about Black and African History included within Ursinus' curriculum. The most pregestious advocate was Byron Jackson who was a Black, male student at Ursinus College and led Ursinus' BSA/BSU. Aside from Byron, there were also other students from Ursinus' past who voiced their opinion on the lack of courses about Black studies. This portion will include articles from the Ursinus Weekly, now known as The Grizzly, that illustrate the concern and yearn for courses on Black and African History. These discussions highlight the need for Black Studies at Ursinus before the arrival of the AAAS program.

The AAAS program is compromised of courses from numerous different departments. Since its start, the AAAS minor has been 20 credits with 4 credits of introductory classes. Through the 15 years that the program has existed, classes have changed department or name, been eliminated, and new ones have been added. The diverse courses offered reflect the interdisciplinary nature of the program.

Viewers learn of how the Ursinus College African American and Africana Studies Program has impacted both culture and student life on campus. Since created, the program has provided students with the chance to learn of a diverse Africana history and culture by allowing students to enroll in program classes, complete research, and attend events and program trips. 

The AAAS program today consists of many professors who reside in different departments, which provides each of them unique knowledge to make the program as well as rounded and perceptive as it is today. Many of the professors contribute in their own way through various courses in their particular department that focus on the African experience. As shown in the Courses and Requirements page, some of these classes include a philosophy course, previously taught by Reverend Rice, about the African American Religious Experience, to an English course, taught by Dr. Lott, about the African American experience in colleges throughout the country. 

Cloake House History: The Cloake House is a residential alternative for students who are interested in AAAS or service roles in Sankofa Umoja NIA (S.U.N.) S.U.N. advocates for the needs of students at Ursinus while empowering, teaching, discussing and exploring the Black experience. The organization helps students strive for academic excellence, and promotes positive images of black people while also helping students become an integral part of the Ursinus College community. Cloake House began under Special Interest Housing (SPINT) which provides students with a unique opportunity to collaborate with faculty and their peers to create an affinity group. The affinity group should encourage students to come together for a common purpose while contributing to campus life. SPINT is an entirely student-run program, each house is assigned with an advisor who will support them in setting goals for the year to create and execute programs for the year. Students both interested in Africana and African American Studies and American History came together under SPINT housing. Now the Cloake House falls under affinity housing which allows students both interested in the AAAS program and S.U.N. to live in the house. Cloake House has had a rich history at Ursinus College. The events hosted at the house have ranged from socials such as hair mask-making to poster painting parties to discussions about the black experience at Ursinus College. While the house has faced criticisms for creating a space for those interested in AAAS and S.U.N., the house overall has proved to be a safe space for students at Ursinus College, specifically students of color. With the support and guidance of Dr. O the advisor for Cloake House, the residents of Cloake hope to accomplish more educational events in collaboration with the AAAS Department beginning semester 2020.

The AAAS program had little to no campus visibility prior to 2012-2013 academic school year when Dr. Nzadi Keita assumed the role of program coordinator. Early on, the program was budget-less and partnerships with Rev. Charles Rice and the Chaplain’s office, Mrs. Patton and Multicultural Services, and students from Sankofa Umoja Nia (S.U.N.) made these events possible. With the arrival of Dr. Edward Onaci, the program started hosting a Fall Social and Kwanza celebration in 2013. As the program began to grow, they were able to petition the Arts and Lecture Committee an eventually receive funding in 2015. The African American Africana Studies guest lecture series soon followed and was renamed the Rev. Charles Rice Speaker Series in 2017. It is crucial to note that the creation/hosting of programming is an additional responsibility that core members of the AAAS Program have taken on in addition to producing scholarship, teaching, advising and serving on committees. Faculty had to insist that these programs would count as part of their service to the college in order to meet the needs of students requesting such events, faculty, and staff who look like them.

We would like to thank Dr. Patricia Lott, Ms. Carolyn Weigel, and Mr. Andrew Prock for their continuous support and assistance.

“...For a young man like me, the invention of the Internet was the invention of space travel”

  - Ta-Nehisi Coates

As this sentence suggests, the creation of the Internet, which led to the digital age, had as much an impact on human innovation as space travel. The digital age began in the 1990s with the introduction of new advanced technologies to public consumption. This era is extremely significant in Ursinus' history because of the immense change. The Digital Age forced college students and faculty to craft a new set of skills pertaining to computers and software. In so doing, students adapted to a new education that relied on digital screens rather than pen and paper exclusively. The era also created a different type of college graduate, one with the power of the internet beneath their fingertips.

This research project seeks to answer the following question: How did the implementation of digital technologies affect Ursinus students both positively and negatively? To investigate this question, our team visited the Ursinus archives and digital commons for critical primary sources. We also consulted with secondary sources like Cathy N. Davidson's New Education to help gain insight into the convergence of academia and technology.

We discovered that the Digital Age, including the birth of the internet, cultivated new educational and social experiences that affected Ursinus students both positively and negatively. On the one hand, the age enabled different clubs, academic studies, and valuable skills to flourish among the student body. It also gave Ursinus students new opportunities in academia, increased their digital interconnection with communities on and off-campus, and geared graduates with highly demanded digital technology skills. On the other hand, problems stemming from the internet's harsh reality caused students to face self-esteem issues, invasion of privacy and bullying from anonymous classmates.