Educational Institution Quotes
In 1897 one of the most contentious political issues in America was that of “free silver”—allowing silver to back American currency as well as gold. The country’s economy could not grow because more currency could not be issued for want of gold to back it. Meanwhile, the U. S. had a great deal of silver. William Jennings Bryant {640992} and the Democrats {591769} advocated free silver, and the Republicans fought to maintain the gold standard. The president of the very conservative Brown University advocated free silver to the shock of the trustees. They sent Andrews a letter asking him not to speak publicly on the subject as it would jeopardize donations and endowments. Andrews resigned. The incident caused a national furor about academic freedom with the public and most of the alumni siding with Andrews. He rescinded his resignation but was pushed out the following year. Later, the trustees named a building after him.
This separation has been the norm in Britain and America since then, except in the latter part of the 20th century, many institutions have adopted a public education mission and program and the elite scientists have become leaders in educating the general public. This followed the Model of the New York American Museum of Natural History —originally an elite science institution which became a leader in public education while maintaining the science program,
