Clarence H. Brooks 1922 Cullowhee Normal and Industrial School diploma

This “Senior Class” diploma was presented to Clarence H. Brooks by the Cullowhee Normal and Industrial School on May 8, 1922. The diploma is signed by Robert L. Madison as President and W.E. Bird as Dean of the institution. Madison, considered the founder of Western Carolina University, served as the first president of Cullowhee High School, later Cullowhee Normal and Industrial School, from 1889-1912 and from 1920-1923. William Ernest Bird (1890-1975) attended Cullowhee High School and graduated in 1911 from Cullowhee Normal and Industrial School. After earning a graduate degree in 1920, he returned to Cullowhee as an English instructor. Bird primarily served in the dual roles of professor-administrator for Western Carolina College till his retirement in 1956 except for a two year period during which he served as the acting president