In 1934 Harding College moved to Searcy . In a plant three times as lage as the one at Morrilton, there was provided the necessary room for a normal , healthy growth for many years. Most of the faculty moved to Searcy with the school; other members were added . Families, 100, interested in keeping their children in Christian surroundings followed the school. Dr. Armstrong continued as president of the school until he resigned in 1936. He continued his Bible teaching , however, and was made Dean of Bible and "President Emerlus". Dr . George S. Benson, then a missionary in China, was elected president . Progress has been made in every field during the college's si x years at Searcy. The faculty has been increased and more courses added to meet the demands of an ever-growing student body, The campus has been beautified. a rose garden planted, a printing shop added, a nd the college plant improved. Immediately after being made president Dr. Benson determined to clear the school of indebtedness. He set th is goal for 1940 and he worked tirelessly. On Thanksgiving Day, 1939, in the Homecoming chapel he announced to a crowded auditorium that the goal had been reached- that Harding College was debt-free. Following the chapel exercises which were broadcasted to hund reds, the crowd gathered about a huge bonfire, lighted by Dr. Benson, and looked on as Dr. Armstrong cast the cancelled mortgage into the fire . The strains of the "Alma Mater" were never before sung so joyously . A gift of $5,000 in insur· once policies was presented to Dr. Benson by the Alumni Association as the first step toward an endowmen t. The burning of the mortgage may be considered an epoch in the history of Harding- Now she can go forward always--continuing to teach "What has God said?" to thousands and preparing others to teach it to the world.
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