This year is Kirkwood’s 60th anniversary. The College Archives holds many documents and photos from the early years of our history. We always enjoy looking back and would like to take this anniversary as an opportunity to share a few of the ways the college has changed since 1966.
Did you know that the college’s original name wasn’t Kirkwood? It was originally Area Ten Community College. When the state was setting up vocational schools, it split the state into 15 different districts with the schools named after what district they were located in.
But in 1968, students petitioned for Area Ten to adopt a “more humanized name.”
Over 150 names were submitted by students, faculty and staff for consideration. Suggestions included historical and contemporary political figures, features of the landscape, variations on the number ten, and some very silly suggestions such as “Enie, Menie, Minie, Mo.” In August 1968, Kirkwood Community College was officially adopted as the college’s name, in honor of Iowa’s Civil War-era Governor.
Our name isn’t the only thing that has changed over the past 60 years. Our campus has grown, starting with the opening of Linn Hall in 1969. The first sports teams, baseball and golf, began in spring of 1969. We adopted Sammy the Eagle as our mascot in 1982.
But some parts of Kirkwood have remained constant throughout the years, such as the Communique. The first issue was published in 1967.
History is not just something that has happened in the past. It’s something that we create every day at Kirkwood!
To make sure that this history is preserved, the Archives collects donated items that illustrate current life at Kirkwood.
Do you have photos, posters or other items related to events on campus or student organizations? Let us know.
If you would like to learn more about Kirkwood’s history or donate items, you can email the Archives at archives@kirkwood.edu. A small collection of photos and other historical documents can be viewed online through the Iowa Heritage Digital Collections at tinyurl.com/2mct5wft. More information can be found at guides.kirkwood.edu/archives.
Categories: Feature, Library Update
