A Centennial View of the
University of Chicago
|
Announcements of the Federated Theological Faculty of the University of Chicago, 1958-1959. The 1943 merger of the faculties of Chicago Theological Seminary, Meadville Theological School, Disciples Divinity House, and the University's Divinity School created the largest group of theological institutions in the nation. Although this joint venture was discontinued in 1960, the schools have continued to work closely under less formal arrangements. |
Bringing the University to the City
Professional
Schools
As early as the 1930s, the
business school also sponsored downtown programs for working business
people. The Executive Program was created for experienced managers who
wanted to sharpen their decision-making skills and broaden their understanding
of problems which extended beyond individual companies or industries.
Likewise, the 190/MBA program provided younger executives with opportunities
to study during evenings or weekends while working full-time. Faculty
members gained by testing their theoretical assumptions against the
experiences of students who were already engaged in commercial activities.
The Divinity School was formed from the Baptist Union Theological Seminary, which had been in operation for twenty-five years before the University opened in 1892. Students from other denominations were welcomed, and by 1894 the Disciples Divinity House opened to support students from that denomination at the University. Ryder Divinity House, associated with Lombard College in Galesburg, Illinois, similarly helped Universalist students.
Harper advocated affiliation agreements with other denominational schools, intending to make the University of Chicago a nucleus for theological and ministry training in the Middle West. At first hesitant to accept Harper's invitation because of the "tainted" Rockefeller money at the University, Chicago Theological Seminary (Congregational) decided to move from its West Side location to Hyde Park in 1914. Meadville Theological School (Unitarian) arrived from Pennsylvania in the 1920s, following a successful exchange program with the University.
More recently, the Lutheran School of Theology at Chicago built a new campus on 55th Street, and McCormick Theological Seminary (Presbyterian) sold its North Side campus to DePaul University and moved into the former Phi Kappa Psi fraternity house at 56th and Woodlawn. The Catholic Theological Union, the largest Roman Catholic theological school in the country, is also located in Hyde Park. This accumulation of theological institutions has not only expanded educational opportunities for students and faculty from many denominations, but has produced a substantial body of ministerial candidates for the Chicago region.