chapel every day. Later in life many of the people who get a little tired of it will wish they could come back and go to chapel. They will really think of chapel as being a highlight of their experience at Harding. I have had this told to me over and over by alumni; not while they are in school, but when they get out. They think back, "You know - my what I missed, what I could have had." So I guess it's just a fact of life. I think it's a great advantage in a Christian college in being able to study with so many young people with like faith. I didn't have this when I was growing up in New Orleans where there were only two or three Christians my age. So when I came to Harding it was like a little bit of heaven because we had so many and then we only had 379 students. And too, this is a wonderful place to find a Christian mate. There is no guarantee you will find one, you still have to look, but at least there's a better opportunity in a place like Harding. Here you see one another under all types of pressures. These are some of the advantages I think you have at a Christian school; there are others of course. Petit Jean: Why did you choose Christian education as your field? Ganus: I know an education is important, but I would not teach in a school that was not a Christian school. For the simple reason that I feel a Christian education is the best kind of education. Sometimes I've had people say, "Brother Ganus, I'd like my child to have a Christian education, but I want him to have a good education." As if it is the case of 'either-or', but it's not to me, it's 'both-and.' When you get a Christian education in a school such as Harding you have strong academic work and this is evident by our students who go on to graduate school and do outstandingly in professional work. For example, we've had. 156 young people to go through pre-medicine at Harding and go on to medical school, but only one has failed to make the grade. One out of 156; that's tremendous. That is an indication of the quality of our science and pre-medical programs. The same can be said for other areas, not necessarily in the same numbers, but it is tremendous when they go on and write back to us and say how well they were prepared in history, mathematics, psychology or social work. This is an indication that Christian education can be strong academically. Petit Jean: How did you get into this field? , Ganus: When I graduated from Harding, I was going to preach. I started preaching when I was a freshman here in 1939 and have been ever since. I was moving to Charleston, Miss., to preach for two years, and I decided to go ahead and get my Master's degree. Dr. Benson, who was president then, asked me to come back to Harding and teach. The president of David Lipscomb College in Nashville, Tenn., also asked me to come over there with a view of ultimately becoming head of the history department. I visited Lipscomb, but I knew Harding and I decided to come back to Harding because here I could teach Bible as well as history. I loved Harding and always have. I decided I would teach Bible and history and preach each weekend. This is my 31st year teaching at Harding, except I don't have much chance m teach anymore; just occasionally. Petit Jean: What are the personal rewards you have gained from being at Harding? Ganus: I suppose the feeling of being able to assist thousands of young people to realize their ambitions, their goals educationally, assist them to grow into a more mature relationship with God, assist them to become better Christians and better citizens of this nation in which we live is my personal reward. I'm not in Christian education for the money. I want to see young people grow and develop, and I love the institution, its purpose and what it's trying to do. Because Christian education is Christ in education is the only reason I would be at a school like Harding. I have gained personal benefits from having our children here in this community and with the wonderful associations that my family and I have with thousands of Christian people. My own opportunity to grow spiritually and to mature and develop is a reward of a Christian college. But I really believe that my best reward is watching young people come here immature unlearned and somewhat weak at times and then see them leave as strong faithful Christians. That to me is one of the great joys of being at a Christian school. Occasionally it goes the other way; you see them go downhill, but it's so seldom in comparison to the number that grow, blossom, mature and develop. And that's what it's all about. 1. CLIFTON L. GANUS, JR., President of the College. 2. DR. GANUS makes an announcement in a chapel service. 3. LAUGHING with alumni, Dr. Ganus enjoys the Black and Gold banquet in November. 4. LISTENING to a friend, Dr. Ganus pauses at the November Homecoming game. PRESIDENT - 21
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