|
The New ASU Story:
Leadership
|
|
Previous Image
Category Index
Next Image
Seventh Principal Arthur John Matthews 1900-1904
UP UPC ASUP Matthews, Arthur John
President Matthews brought 30 years of progress to the Tempe
Normal School/Arizona State Teachers College at Tempe. Prior to Arizona
statehood, the Normal School of Arizona enrolled high school students
when no other secondary educational facilities in the state existed. It
was Principal Matthews who was instrumental in changing the school to an
all-college student status. He initiated a building schedule that
included the state's first dormitories. Of the 18 buildings constructed
under his tenure, six are still in use. Matthews' legacy of an "evergreen
campus" with the importation of many shrubs and trees, including the
planting of Palm Walk, continues today with the establishment of ASU
Arboretum.
|
|
|
|
Matthews also saw to it that the Tempe Normal School of Arizona
was an accredited institution outside the state. He served on numerous
national educational boards, bringing recognition to the campus and its faculty. On March 20, 1911 an historical event occurred when former President
Theodore Roosevelt visited the Tempe Normal School of Arizona, and spoke from
the steps of Old Main. He had dedicated the Roosevelt Dam the day before and was
impressed with the people and their state. He noted that construction of the
dam would benefit central Arizona's growth and that of the Tempe Normal School.
|
|
|
