Unique Adult Education
College Caravan
In .solving his own educational problem.
Thomas Kurton hit on an idea which is help¬
ing other Carolinians who want more edu¬
cation than they received in youth.
By
НЕШ
FETTER COOK
With September, the school month,
Burton's Institute, an educational in¬
stitution unique in its origin and prac¬
tical in courses offered adults, opened
its doors for the eighth consecutive
season in Charlotte. N. C. This insti¬
tute. which has as its slogan— "Neither
distance, darkness nor extremes of
weather impose hardship on any adult
who wishes to extend his education" —
has five schools in its organization. It
even includes a "Caravan College."
which is planned to take an actual
classroom to other cities and towns in
the Carolinas for extension classes in
Business Promotion and Leadership
Training courses.
This traveling college furnishes
teachers, equipment, books, supplies,
and the syllabus for training or in¬
struction of classes which have proved
much more effective than correspond¬
ence courses, itinerant lecturers or
other similar types of educational pro¬
grams for these subjects. During the
past six years more than 75 classes
in public speaking, human relations,
salesmanship and personality develop¬
ment have been held in cities in the
two Carolinas. other than Charlotte,
and enthusiastic reports received from
more than 2,500 men and women
about benefits derived from them. Re¬
sponsible organizations such as busi¬
ness firms, civic clubs, churches, etc.,
acting as local sponsors can secure
these courses offered outside of Char¬
lotte.
Burton Institute is located with¬
in three blocks of the Queen City's
famous Square at Trade and Tryon.
The other four schools within the Insti¬
tute include: the Elementary School,
offering the first eight grades of edu¬
cation in an accelerated course that
can be completed by most adults in
two years; the High School, offering
academic and vocational courses which
adults complete usually in 18 months
for the four years of study covered;
the College of Business Promotion,
with one and two-year courses in ad¬
vertising. salesmanship, commercial
art. administration, accounting and
secretarial training: and Burton Junior
College which offers two years of
college work for students who seek
complete preparation for a business
or professional career.
The newest development at the In¬
stitute has been the use of "Speed-
writing." a system of shorthand based
on the alphabet instead of signs and
symbols, which can be learned in six
weeks, saving nearly a year in training
of stenographers and secretaries.
This system has been used in larger
industrial centers, the U. S. Civil Serv¬
ice and Military Services for some
time, but this is its first inclusion in a
course in a school in Charlotte.
Dr. Thomas Burton who has built
his schools into this institute in Char¬
lotte over the past seven years which
more than 3.000 students have at¬
tended, about 2.000 of them veterans,
is noted for progressive "first time"
educational plans and subjects. His
own education was interrupted when,
quixotically enough, he left boarding
school at the age of 19 to teach in the
public schools of Vermont. Then, at the
end of World War I. as a U. S.
Army officer honorably discharged, he
found himself at 26 with a 9th grade
education, and three years of leaching
experience; he wanted definitely to
continue teaching — but there were ob¬
stacles in his path.
He found schools would not accept
teachers without a college education;
colleges would not accept students
without high school diplomas; and even
high schools would not accept dis¬
charged army officers in sophomore
classes made up of teen-agers.
There was no G. I. Bill after that
first World War and it was by cxtricat-
I)r. Thomas Burton, Founder of
Burton's Institute in Charlotte, N. C.,
which offers a wide variety of courses
to adults desiring more education both
in Charlotte and, by means of its
"Caravan College," in other cities and
towns of both the Carolinas.
ing himself from this unusual predica¬
ment of his own, that Tom Burton
conceived the idea that was to become
Burton Institute in Charlotte, N. C,
twenty-five years later when he had
had 22 years of additional teaching
and administrative experience and ac¬
quired three college degrees. The lat¬
ter include a B.S. from Columbia Uni-
ersity; M.A. from Teachers' College
of the same university; and Ed.D. from
the Graduate School of Education of
Harvard University.
When the G.I. Bill did materialize
after World War II, eager ex-soldiers
and sailors found Burton Institute al¬
ready organized for just such pupils
as themselves. In the seven years to
date it has led the way and been fol¬
lowed by other schools in organizing
classes aimed especially to help adult
pupils. Some of Burton’s ideas have
been directly adopted by other schools
throughout North Carolina and Dr.
Burton is proud to have had some of
his school’s innovations accepted and
used by the public school system.
Among these innovations first found
at Burton Institute are: the introduc¬
tion of accelerated courses for adults
in elementary and high school educa¬
tion; inauguration of the day and night
school, both running classes five times
( Continued on page 19)
6
THE STATE. SEPTEMBER 27. 1952
