Day 55 of 110: Martha Berry's Legacy

Earlier this week I wrote my check to attend the DAR School's Dinner during NSDAR's Continental Congress in June. I've always enjoyed attending this event each year and hearing directly from the schools and the children they serve.

I've talked before in this blog about DAR supported schools Hindman Settlement School and Hillside School. DAR also supports Berry College, founded in 1902 by Daughter Martha Berry.

Martha decided in 1902 to use the 83 acres that she had inherited from her father to found the Boys' Industrial School. Eventually, her endeavor grew to include a girls' school (1909) and a junior college (1926). The junior college later expanded into a senior college, Berry College, which graduated its first class in 1932.

Martha wanted only rural children to attend her schools; she refused to admit students from urban areas, including nearby Rome. From its inception the Berry program emphasized the regenerative power of work. Diligent labor, she believed, would promote character in her students by encouraging responsibility and a sense of self-worth. Beginning in 1914, students at the schools would work each week for eight hours on two consecutive days and attend classes on four other days. The work program helped to keep operating costs low, as students constructed the campus and maintained its facilities, and allowed students to use their labor to pay all of their tuition and expenses.

Read more about Martha Berry and Berry College!