'Democratizing Science': Robert M. LaFollette's Vision for Education by DeLou Wilson

Dublin Core

Title

'Democratizing Science': Robert M. LaFollette's Vision for Education by DeLou Wilson

Subject

History

Description

Robert “Fightin’ Bob” La Follette Sr. spent the majority of his life as a Progressive Republican who attempted to reform the United States and remove monied interests from politics. While he was able to pass a great deal of legislation with long-lasting ramifications, his core goal was never attained; however, La Follette firmly believed that an educated populace was vital to achieving his political aims. His administration partnered with La Follette’s lifelong personal friend and president of the University of Wisconsin Charles Van Hise, as well as many other professors, in order to embark upon a massive, politically-minded, public education campaign. ‘The Wisconsin Idea,’ a guiding philosophy of the University of Wisconsin up to the modern day, was born from this collaboration. This paper explores how La Follette and the Wisconsin Idea sought to achieve their goals and examines the impact of these efforts on the lives of common Wisconsinites. In general, it is argued that the Wisconsin Idea fundamentally altered the way Wisconsinites interacted with the state university and helped create the massive UW System seen today.

Creator

DeLou Wilson

Source

Senior Showcase Oral presentation

Publisher

Ripon College

Date

April 17, 2018

Rights

The author reserves all rights.

Format

pdf

Identifier

Majors: English, History
Minor: Music

Madison, Wisconsin
History Senior Seminar

Files

His590'17Wilson.pdf

Citation

DeLou Wilson, “'Democratizing Science': Robert M. LaFollette's Vision for Education by DeLou Wilson,” Senior Showcase Digital Collection, accessed March 28, 2024, https://rcseniorshowcase.omeka.net/items/show/106.

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