Life & Times of Virginia Tech Presidents

Julian Ashby Burruss, 1919-1945:  The Later Years

The remaining 16 years of Burruss’s tenure were not as impressive as the first 10, although the beginning of his second decade in office found him and the college optimistic about the future of VPI.

During those 16 years, work to change the corps and improve its image was successful, the Alumni Association and the college initiated the first Virginia Tech Day for high school students, and the Alumni Loyalty Fund—later called the Alumni Fund—was established.

The effects of the depression hit the college particularly hard in 1932-33. The General Assembly cut faculty salaries and the college’s biennial appropriation. Student enrollment declined during 1933-34 but began to rise again the following year. In a cost-cutting move, Burruss eliminated home economics—the only program on campus to be cut—but it was reestablished three years later.

The president, who held the office longer than any other person in Virginia Tech’s history, initiated a new system of record-keeping and accounting and helped obtain several grant loans from the federal Public Works Administration, primarily to construct new buildings. These funds, along with money from the Civil Works Administration and the Works Projects Administration, financed projects that changed the appearance of the campus.

Burruss also played a key role in obtaining funding to construct a new teaching and administration building, which was named, simply, the Teaching and Administration Building. It was completed in 1936, and the board of visitors renamed it Julian A. Burruss Hall in 1944 to honor Burruss’s 25 years of service. Numerous other buildings were also erected during Burruss’s tenure. One—modern-day Seitz Hall—was designed by the agricultural engineering staff, who also trained the construction crew and supervised much of their work.

Under Burruss Tech also established extension schools offering the first two years of engineering; allowed a group of students to rent a house and live off campus; launched a successful intramural athletic program; received federal funds to conduct research in rural electrification; enjoyed the attention from Fred Waring and Charles Gaynor writing “Moonlight and VPI”; and turned much of student personnel services over to the efficient YMCA on campus, which was led by Paul Derring. Hampden-Sydney College conferred an LL.D. degree on Burruss in 1938, and in 1939 the National Association of Land Grant Colleges elected him as its president.

With World War II on the horizon, over 500 students registered for the draft on October 16, 1940. The following year, many VPI staff members left to work for the newly constructed Hercules Powder/Radford Ordinance Works and its higher pay, which created a near crisis in obtaining staff, particularly for the dining hall. The school was also losing younger faculty members to the armed services and defense-related work. Yet the 1941-42 school session brought the largest enrollment in VPI’s history. At Burruss’s urging following the attack on Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941, the majority of the students remained in school that session, but the college developed accelerated programs so they could complete their work sooner. For the first time, Virginia Tech awarded degrees, including its first doctor of philosophy degree, at the end of winter quarter.

Student complaints about the mess hall mushroomed in the summer of 1942, leading the corps to march on Burruss’s home to read a proclamation of protest against the aging president, who had increasingly insulated himself from the students. The fallout from the march, which included reports in newspapers that the corps in one of the country’s largest military schools had rebelled, ultimately led to a special meeting between the board and Gov. Colgate Darden, who suggested that two people be hired to provide help for the overworked president.

In 1943 and 1944 VPI discontinued football. In February 1943 all juniors and seniors were called into the armed services. The same month, VPI was selected for the Army Specialized Training Program. Other war training programs followed. At the peak of the programs, the campus held more than 2,000 soldiers (46 of them obtained engineering degrees). During the war, three former Tech students received the Medal of Honor. Although it was kept secret during the war, faculty and alumni cooperated in research that led to the development of the atomic bomb.

Through the efforts of Governor Darden, the college merged in 1944 with nearby Radford State Teachers College, and most women’s programs were moved to Radford for the next 20 years. The name of the Blacksburg school was officially changed to Virginia Polytechnic Institute, and the Radford school became Radford College, Women’s Division of the Virginia Polytechnic Institute. Surprisingly, Burruss paid little attention to the merger.

Recognizing that advancing age and increasing pressure were taking a toll on Burruss, the board of visitors created in 1945 the office of executive assistant to the president, filling the position with John R. Hutcheson, director of the Agricultural Extension Division. Before he could meet with Hutcheson, Burruss was injured in a car accident, and the board appointed Hutcheson acting president. When it became clear that Burruss could not resume his duties, the board elected him president emeritus and named Hutcheson president, effective July 1, 1945.

Burruss died January 4, 1947.