College Club House and Gymnasium. Generous friends of the College joined with the staff of students to provide this handsome building, which is used as a college club house and gymnasium. The gymnasium is supplied with all the modern equipment. It may also be transformed into an auditorium, a full complement of opera seats being provided for such needs. The building has been designed to serve as a suitable place for such social functions as are given by the students of the institution. Altogether, it is the center of the college life outside of classroom and laboratory and contributes very materially to the social life of the students. The building was placed in commission during the winter term of 1906, and rapidly justified the faith of those friends who labored so disinterestedly to provide it.

The Library and Museum is a fireproof structure, granted by the legislature of 1907, which now houses the library and the geological and mineralogical museum collection. It contains also the business and executive offices of the college.

The Library contains 26,679 bound volumes, about 25,000 pamphlets, classified and accessible for references, and about 1,560 maps. The Library is especially rich in files of periodicals relating to the various branches of mining engineering. It has on its shelves complete sets of many of the important journals on mining and the allied subjects.

The Power Plant provides light, heat and power for all the buildings.

Courses of Study. The College of Mines offers courses leading to the degrees of Engineer of Mines and Bachelor of Science. The college is in session for four terms each year. It is therefore possible for a properly prepared student to cover the ordinary four years' engineering course in three calendar years.

THE STATE NORMAL SCHOOL SYSTEM

The normal school system of Michigan consists of four institutions, the Michigan State Normal College at Ypsilanti; the Central State Normal School at Mt. Pleasant; the Northern State Normal School at Marquette; and the Western State Normal School at Kalamazoo. The following statement taken from the Act of 1889 revising the compiling of the school laws clearly indicates the guiding principle which underlies the work of the normal schools: "The purpose of the normal school shall be the instruction of the principles in the art of teaching and in all the various branches pertaining to the public schools of the State of Michigan." Two distinctive lines of work are carried on, academic and professional. The academic work covers the same ground as that of colleges although the subject matter is presented more from the teacher's standpoint. Each state normal school maintains a training department where students do practice teaching. This practice teaching is a part of the work of the professional courses.

The State Board of Education under the statute is the controlling body of the normal school system and has full power under the constitution to regulate the work and decide upon the conditions of graduation and also the character of the certificates that shall be granted. Each normal school has a president who is the executive and administrative officer of the institution. The presidents of the normal schools constitute the Normal Executive Council. The function of this council is to recommend to the State Board of Education courses of study and such other matters as are of common concern to the several schools.

Upon the completion of prescribed courses in any of the state normal schools the following teachers' certificates are granted by the State Board of Education:

A Life Certificate

A Graded School Certificate valid for three years

A Rural School Certificate valid for three years.

For all student residents of Michigan the tuition at any of the normal schools is five dollars for each regular term of twelve weeks and three dollars for the summer term of six weeks.

A brief sketch of each state normal school is given in the pages immediately following.

MICHIGAN STATE NORMAL COLLEGE]

Location. The Normal College is located at Ypsilanti, Washtenaw County. Ypsilanti is on the main line of the Michigan Central Railroad over which it is readily accessible from all points on the various divisions of the Michigan Central system. The Ypsilanti branch of the New York Central gives names of approach from the south and west; the interurban electric line passes through the college campus giving communication every hour with Detroit, Ann Arbor, Jackson and other points; the same electric line makes connection with the Ann Arbor Railroad at Ann Arbor, and with the Pere Marquette system at Wayne.

History. The Michigan State Normal College was opened in 1852 under the name of the Michigan State Normal School. It was the first normal school west of the Alleghany mountains.

With the establishment of the normal school the educational system of Michigan as outlined by John D. Pierce, the first State Superintendent of Public Instruction, was completed. At the dedication of the first building of the normal school Mr. Pierce said of the Michigan system: "The system is comprehensive and grand and amply sufficient to reach every child in the state and to furnish him with all the elements of a good education."

At first the purpose of normal schools was to train teachers for the elementary schools but great changes have come over the American system of education since the normal schools were established. The number of elementary schools has increased greatly and in addition to these a large number of high