Ordean Oen
The Servicemen’s Readjustment Act, more commonly known as the GI Bill, provided many WWII veterans with the opportunity to attend colleges and further their education, while also providing colleges the means to grow. “Almost half of returning veterans used GI Bill education benefits.” (1) Colleges surged with incoming students and with the amount of money coming in from them.
Concordia had to figure out a way to adapt and cater to the surge of incoming veterans looking to further their education. John A. Olson was the general supervisor of the campus and facilities, among other duties. He solved the growing pains as they came, some of which included registration. With the number of men attending increasing drastically, the college took incredible measures to house them. “Accordingly, the corporation in November 1945 authorized use of endowment funds to construct a $300,000 building, housing 191 men when it opened in 1947.” (2) Ordean Oen, who attended Concordia starting in 1944, was a part of the US Navy at the beginning of his college career. In his interview, he talked about the temporary buildings on campus after the war to house all the veterans. “Enrollment increased about seven-eight hundred in the fall of ’46-’47. And then Brown Hall opened in 1948 and I stayed at Brown Hall.” (3) He was one of many who served and took advantage of the GI Bill for their educational enrichment. Concordia adapted and grew as much as they could when they could to the influx, as it can be imagined many colleges had to.
While some veterans, such as Oen, pursued a traditional college education, others took a less traditional approach. Nam addresses the topic of veterans attending less traditional schooling. “The Veterans Administration estimated that 2½ million, or one-third of the veterans who entered training under the Servicemen’s Readjustment Act of 1944 had enrolled in craft, trade, or industrial courses alone; almost three-fourths of a million had taken some type of farm training; and large numbers took other specialized training courses of one type or another outside of the regular school system.” (4) Concordia did not provide this type of education, but there were many institutions around the country that could provide this specialized and sought after education to veterans.
The GI Bill provided many veterans with the opportunity to attend college and further their education. Some chose the more traditional routes, while others attended specialized programs, trade schools, and others like it. The GI Bill also gave colleges and universities the means to grow and expand further on the way to the level that they are today. They had to grow and adjust to meet the demands of enrollment and housing, while also updating other facilities to meet those needs. Veterans were given an amazing chance to further their education in any way they chose and many took that opportunity.
Essay by Amanda Randall
1. Norton, Mary Beth, and Jane Kamensky. "America at Midcentury, 1945-1960." In A People and a Nation: A History of the United States, 732. Brief 10th ed. Vol. II: Since 1865. Stamford, CT: Cengage Learning, 2014.
2. Engelhardt, Carroll L. On Firm Foundation Grounded: The First Century of Concordia College (1891-1991). Moorhead, Minn.: College, 1991. 165-188.
3. Ordean Oen, interview by Emily Breitbach, Concordia College [Moorhead, MN], October 12, 2013
4. Nam, C. B. "Impact of the "GI Bills" on the Educational Level of the Male Population." Social Forces 43, no. 1 (1964): 26-32.