Northwest
during the wars
Northwest’s V-12 Program
The campus of Northwest, known as Northwest Missouri State Teachers College at the time, entirely transformed for the good of the war. The V-12 Naval Program was instituted at Northwest during WWII. The purpose was to give prospective naval officers with a college education in the areas of study needed by the Navy. They wanted to preserve the normal college life as much as possible. The program made up much of the Northwest male population during the war. By Northwest incorporating the program on their campus, it showed their support of the war.
Images Courtesy of the Northwest University Archives
Northwest’s Junior Red Cross
Another form of Northwest's support for the world wars was the Junior Red Cross. The Northwest chapter consisted of female student volunteers during the United States involvement in WWI. On July 26, 1918, Mrs. Edmund F. Brown, in St. Louis, who was assistant manager of the Southwestern Division of the American Red Cross, addressed the entire student body during her second visit to Northwest. She praised everyone for the response to her request for surgical dressings, which she made in the winter of 1917, and for those who volunteered their time to support the Junior Red Cross since then. The Junior Red Cross had raised funds for their efforts by hosting plays and other fundraisers. The efforts of the group made a large impact for support of the war on campus.
