FIFTY YEARS OF BANKING EDUCATION HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN INSTITUTE OF BANKING °$ Richard W. Hill and Marion Turner American Institute of Banking Section American Bankers Association iiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii New York • 1950 Preface THE American Institute of Banking was one of the pioneers in the field of adult education for business. It has been in con- tinuous operation for almost half a century, and its work has been so successful that prominent educators have paid high tribute to it, as have leaders in other lines of business and industry. Its con- tribution to chartered banking needs no comment here. Because of the Institute's contribution to the successful develop- ment of business education for adults, it seems fitting that a record of its organization and operation should be made. With that object in mind the Executive Council, at its midwinter meeting in January 1945, authorized the publication of this history. The task of assem- bling the necessary material and preparing it for publication was dele- gated jointly to Richard W. Hill, retired national secretary, and to Marion Turner, assistant to the educational director. Under the orig- inal plan Mr. Hill was to be responsible for the record of develop- ments along administrative lines, while Miss Turner was to give her attention to educational developments. After assembling the basic material covering his phase of the work for the period from 1900 to 1940, Mr. Hill unfortunately passed away in January 1947. Miss Turner was then given full responsibility for completing the research, writing the manuscript, and preparing it for publication. This volume is eloquent testimony to the thorough- going character of her work. In addition to searching the official records, the authors corre- sponded with a number of Institute pioneers in an effort to supple- ment the available material with first-hand information from some of those who played a prominent part in the early history of the organization. Their reminiscences and suggestions have been most helpful, and to them the Institute gratefully acknowledges its debt. Hi iv PREFACE The Institute is also indebted to Dr. William A. Irwin, former national educational director, for the preparation of basic material covering the decade 193 7- 1947, the period of his tenure of office, for the writing of a large part of the last four chapters, for reviewing the completed manuscript, and for many valuable suggestions. The American Bankers Association takes pride in the presenta- tion of this history of its educational section, the American Institute of Banking. Harold Stonier, Executive Manager American Bankers Association Contents Chapter Page I Birth of the Institute Idea i II The Idea Takes Root—and Grows 10 III American Institute of Bank Clerks 22 IV Getting Under Way 31 V Development of Institute Chapters 41 VI The Bulletin 64 VII An Adventure in Banking Education 78 VIII First National Convention of Chapters 92 IX Significant Chapter Activities no X A Decisive Step in Institute Evolution 133 XI The Period of "Benevolent Paternalism" 147 XII Educational Developments 160 XIII The Institute Comes of Age 191 XIV The Dawn of a New Era 224 XV Productive Education 238 XVI Strengthening the Foundations 255 XVII Episodes in the Life of the Bulletin 271 XVIII Adventuring in a New Field 283 XIX The Institute in Peace and War 296 XX The A.I.B. Goes Coeducational 306 XXI Building a More Effective National Administration . . . 318 XXII Educational Progress 351 XXIII Integrating the Educational Program 377 XXIV Administrative Progress 413 XXV Convention Features and Election Procedure 431 XXVI Supplementary Educational Activities 452 XXVII National Committees 476 XXVIII Correspondence Chapter, Inc 488 XXIX The Teaching Staff and Teaching Aids 498 v vi CONTENTS Chapter Page XXX The Institute Meets the Tests of War 506 XXXI The Institute in Its Fifth Decade 528 XXXII An Educational Democracy in Action 555 In Memoriam: George E. Allen 563 Richard W. Hill 575 Appendix I Constitution and By-Laws of the American Institute of Bank Clerks, With Amendments 588 II Publicity Circular 598 III Articles of Association Suggested for Chapters 601 IV Suggested Plan for the Establishment of an Organization to Take Over the Management of the American Institute of Bank Clerks 605 V Constitution and By-Laws of the Associated Chapters . . . 608 VI Constitution and By-Laws of the American Institute of Bank- ing, With Revisions and Amendments 613 VII Official Lists 642 VIII National Convention Debates 671 IX National Public Speaking Contests 680 X Institute Statistics 685 Index 687 FIFTY YEARS OF BANKING EDUCATION History of the American Institute of Banking [...]... New became the York, the terms of the into, the president of the company, secretary of the Institute with the authority of general manager, pany's By an organi- and other members of the com- its office facilities were to be used for the purposes of the Institute to an extent mutually agreed upon A membership Bank York Clerks, A association, named the American was organized under the laws of the constitution... Chapman was it the father of the Institute idea not the slightest doubt i i i i : II The Idea Takes Root — and Grows IMMEDIATELY following the Cleveland convention of the American Bankers tion continued on the part of clerks The members tion the subject carefully Committee on Educa- study of the need for broader knowledge its bank Association, the and of their desire for further educa- of the committee... Board of Trustees, and that a limit was placed on the total number of full members Section seven, providing for the date of the annual meeting of members of the Institute, stated that at such annual meeting "three Trustees shall be elected in the places of the class terms of office shall then expire, to hold office for three years. " Thus the members elected the trustees, while the the members and also the. .. Only the members and those have the power of voting original Institute shall members elected as full members of the annual or special meet- at the ings of the Institute An analysis of members elected bers this section shows that there were nine original of the Institute (the members of the Board of Trustees by the Committee on Education), that additional were to be elected of twenty-five mem- by the. .. supporter of the American Institute of Banking throughout his entire life, was often referred There appears to to as the father of the Institute have been a difference of opinion on however, for D C Wills, in an article this point, written in 19 19, made the many fathers as the may be stated unequivo- statement that "the Institute possessed as Federal Reserve Act." Nevertheless, cally that Of Joseph this there... member of every local Chapter affiliated with the Institute dues to the Institute, be required to subscribe to the shall, in lieu of Bulletin of the Institute official William C Cornwell, Report of to cation, prepared a report A.B.A Executive Council Institute of cil Bank Clerks chairman of the Committee on Edu- as Committee on the organization of the American for presentation to the Executive American. .. institute They were and invited me and organize chapters in the them assist I them sold on the to be their execu- larger cities of the did not want to leave the banking business in every way I could otherwise." BIRTH OF THE INSTITUTE IDEA When the finally got Bank Committee on Education's institute of [ bank 9 ] clerks under way in the spring of 1901, the Minneapolis Clerks' Association soon joined the organization... set of by-laws officers The committee intended would be temporary were Institute of state of New were prepared and elected that the organization thus effected in character and would be superseded by an educational corporation, preferably under the authority of 22 a : AMERICAN INSTITUTE OF BANK CLERKS the Regents of the University of the State of New [23] York Later, Form of Organi- on the advice of. .. before the meeting of the Board of Trustees shall constitute the original membership of the association and shall remain full members thereof, first Full 25 ] Mem- ^rship except as hereinafter provided Other suitable persons engaged in the banking business or conmay be from time to time elected by the Board of nected therewith Trustees to a full membership in the Institute, but the membership of the Institute. .. form of membership asso- the terms of the constitution, the nine signers auto- AMERICAN INSTITUTE OF BANK CLERKS matically formed the original Board of Trustees After [ membership and became the that, new full members were first elected by the Board of Trustees, the trustees in turn were elected by the members, and the from among ment their was for several years became necessary ] Analysis tureofthe Institute . FIFTY YEARS OF BANKING EDUCATION HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN INSTITUTE OF BANKING °$ Richard W. Hill and Marion Turner American Institute of Banking Section American Bankers Association iiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii New York • 1950 Preface THE American Institute of Banking was one. ardent supporter of the American Institute of Banking throughout his entire life, was often referred to as the father of the Institute. There appears to have been a difference of opinion on this point, however, for D in the United States shortly before the dawn of the twentieth century. The last three decades of the nineteenth century set the stage for the development of the institute idea. It was a period of feverish