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In many respects, Uel Lamkin created
the school that still exists today. A man of wide government experience
who truly understood how public institutions are administered
and funded, Lamkin skillfully steered Northwest through the Depression
and World War II and had a huge impact on the physical campus.
The short list of major buildings constructed during his presidency
includes such landmarks as Roberta Hall, Martindale Gymnasium
and the Horace Mann Laboratory School.
Lamkin briefly attended the University of Missouri before passing
the bar exam and leaving without a degree to serve as a high school
inspector for the State Department of Education. He was eventually
appointed state superintendent of schools then moved to Washington,
D.C., where he worked for the Federal Board of Vocational Education.
Returning to Missouri to assume the Northwest presidency, Lamkin
spent the next quarter-century overseeing a series of major academic
and administrative changes, none more important than the introduction
of the general education curriculum.
Forced to cut salaries (including his own) as the Depression deepened,
Lamkin sometimes accepted bushels of corn from rural students
in lieu of fees. He also made full use of his Washington connections
to capture badly needed government dollars and keep the college
afloat.
During the war years, Lamkin dealt with labor shortages as faculty
and staff marched off to war, and he shouldered the added administrative
burdens imposed by the Navy V-12 and Civilian Pilot Training programs.
Lamkin may be best remembered for his passionate support of physical
education and intercollegiate sports, which found expression in
the nationally ranked basketball teams coached by Henry Iba in
the 1930s and the Kittycats women’s basketball squad that
went undefeated for five straight seasons.
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