After the bombing of Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941, the United States entered World War II. Colleges across the country feared a decline in enrollment resulting from the draft, which was lowered from age 21 to 18 on November 11, 1942. To combat diminished enrollment the American Council on Education met in January 1942, with President Brown in attendance. The council agreed that higher education would play a crucial role in winning the war by providing specialized training programs for men and women.
Although enrollment did fall during the war years, the decrease was not as steep as the administration had feared because the number of females attending Concordia increased 45 percent from 1941 to 1944. New programs were added to the Concordia curriculum tailored to fit the needs of a country at war. Pilot training was offered with physics professor Konrad Lee giving ground instruction after which students transferred to Hector International Airport for flight instruction. Students who passed this instruction were eligible for Army Air Pilot Training. Establishment of the United States Nurses Cadet Corps resulted in enrollment of forty-five nursing students at Concordia in the fall of 1943 to take courses in science and psychology. This program continued through the duration of the war.
Letter written by Milton Lindell to Mae Anderson, Oct. 27, 1944
Further changes in the academic offerings at Concordia focused on accelerated programs with practical course offerings. Summer school was first offered in 1942 and allowed students to graduate in three years. Early graduation relieved public school teacher shortages and allowed more men and women to continue into war services with a degree. New courses added to the curriculum included: “America at War” in economics, “Historical Geography” which highlighted the geography of the war, “Army Office Training” through the business department, and “Meteorology” through the physics department. Campus organizations united and changed their focus to that of the war by conducting fund-raising and service events. The Cobber Serviceman’s Bureau was established to gather the names and addresses of those enlisted in the service to encourage communication. The music club held a program and luncheon in an effort to raise money to purchase instruments an instrument and music for a military camp. The annual homecoming window decorating was cancelled when Cobbers elected to send the money to the war fund instead. Cobber women gathered to knit mittens to send to Norway and met each Tuesday and Thursday evening to fold bandages for the Red Cross. The Concordian ran war time articles that were sent to alumni and those enlisted: “Cobbers in the Service,” “Cobbers and the Colors,” and “Dear Joe,” which featured letters of encouragement and comradery from Concordia women.
Concordian advertisement encouraging Cobber women to help roll bandages for the Red Cross
Communication with Cobber men in the war was not limited to articles in the Concordian. Dr. Mae Anderson, Department Chair of Mathematics and secretary for the Committee on Relations to the Armed Forces, devoted herself to writing letters from the Concordia family to those Cobbers in the service. A motherly figure for many in the war, Dr. Mae Anderson was thanked immensely by all: “Today I received your most welcome letter with more news from Cobberdom than I have received for a long time. I surely appreciate your spending your busy hours writing to me…I guess we all have to give credit to Concordia for any good that comes out of us” wrote Navy Lieutenant Milton Lindell (’43). The letters returned from the servicemen all expressed an attachment to their alma mater. Even when separated by land, sea, and war, Concordia remained a special place for these service men and women.
New war training courses advertised in the June 1942 Concordia College Record
Concordian column "Cobbers with the Colors" details the current locations of Cobbers assisting in the war effort
The first publishing of "Dear Joe" in the Concordian encouraged enlisted Cobbers to continue sending letters home
Cobbers go to War February 1943 Concordian notes the decrease in male enrollment during World War II.
Martin and Sigurd Bjertness were two of the 32 Cobber soldiers killed or missing in action during World War II. The altar and appointments for the Brown Hall chapel were given in memory of these two men. The newspaper clipping describes their loss; the metal plate was affixed to the chapel’s altar.
Certificate given to Concordia College from the United States War Department in 1921 for its operation of the Student Army Training Corps during World War I.
A 1944 admissions brochure promotes educational and career opportunities for women, a target audience while most young men were fighting in World War II.