WALTER P. MORGAN: WIU'S LONGEST PRESIDENTIAL TERM

Walter P. Morgan, born in Vigo County, IN, to William R. and Nancy Piety
Morgan, became president of Western Illinois University four months after
arriving in Macomb. Hired as the principal of the training school in 1912,
Morgan progressed through the ranks and would become the longest standing
chief executive of the institution.

His father was a farmer and his mother a schoolteacher. Hating the farm
life, Morgan turned toward education. He was only 13 when he entered the
teaching profession. Morgan's first position in the field, which he held for
nearly 10 years, was in Vigo County.

He attended summer school at Indiana State Normal and earned enough credits
to graduate from the two-year program in 1895. Shortly after, Morgan
received an appointment at Terre Haute High School. He continued his own
education at the University of Indiana where he earned a bachelor's degree
in 1900.

Eight years later, Morgan moved to Chicago and began graduate work at the
University of Chicago. He completed master's degree requirements in 1909. It
was after this that he was offered an appointment to join the WIU staff.

Morgan was described as tough, resilient and stubborn. He was a short, heavy
set man with an apparent lack of fear. A staunch protector of faculty
privilege, he demanded a strict code of behavior for both students and
faculty.

He looked upon his position as one which offered moral and spiritual
guidance to all. He introduced a number of formal teas and banquets as
social opportunities for students and faculty.

Morgan led the university through a period of inevitable growth during his
30-year tenure at the institution. He had brought with him a "teachers
college" atmosphere which squelched thoughts of giving the institution a
stronger liberal arts foundation.

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