Skull and Bones: a Secret Society's Impact on the Development of American Education

The Order of the Skull and Bones is an one hundred fifty year old secret society. It is known to be the oldest secret society in America. Members are encouraged to take on leadership roles in domestic and international affairs. The secret society's members are business men, corporate executives, senators, congressmen, judges, U.S. presidents, millionaires, billionaires, pentagon officials, CIA officials, corporate lawyers, Washington D.C lobbyist, investment bankers, and leading economic thinkers. The Order of the Skull and Bones society has been harshly criticized and has been the subject of conspiracy theorist because of its members positions in the business world, justice system, and government. Critics and conspiracy theorist allege that society members use their connections with each other to form laws, policies, business deals, and business relationships that are self serving to themselves and their elite circles and are harmful to the rest of the world.

Because of the strict secrecy of the Order of the Skull and Bones, the original, actual purpose for its existence is not known, and the direction for the society of its current members can only be speculated. Its purpose and goals can only be surmised through the actions of known members in their career fields and through rumors. The attention given to the Order of the Skull and Bones has been focused on its members involvement in the economic system, and government policy. However, the impact the society has had on the American education has not been realized. To get an understanding of the society's influence on the American education the origins of the society must be discussed.

In the early 1830s a young man named William H. Russell traveled to Germany to study at the University of Berlin. While at the university he became apart of a German society headed by Gustav Schmollere, a German social thinker. The philosophy of the society was to oppose laissez faire in social policy and oppose the revolutionary social ideals of emerging socialism. The society felt it was best to raise, educate, and reconcile the lower classes on the basis of the existing order, that is the existing social, political and economic structures of their own countries to improve their quality of life. The society also believed in promoting scientific discussion of economic and social issues and international relations.(2)

When William H. Russell returned to America in 1832 he began his studies at Yale University. He was given the authority by the German society in which he became involved to start a chapter of the society in America. So he established the chapter at Yale University and named it The Order of the Skulls and Bones. He initiated several other Yale class men. Among them were Daniel C. Gilman, Andrew D. White, and Timothy Dwight. Soon after their initiation into the society the trio traveled to Germany to study philosophy at the University of Berlin. While there they became acquainted with Gustav Schmollere. When the three returned, they worked with Russell to develop the purpose and goals of the organization and build its membership.(5)

Timothy Dwight later became a professor at Yale Divinity School, and in 1886 was made President of Yale. Since then all of the presidents of Yale have been a "Bonesman" or has had some sort of ties to the Skull and Bones and its interest.(5)

Daniel Gilman as well became involved with college academia. He was made the head librarian at Yale in 1858. Through political maneuvering he got funding for Yale's new science department. He was able to get President Lincoln to sign the Land Grant College Act, which donates public lands for state colleges, agriculture, and science. Once the act was enacted Gilman got Yale to acquire a large portion of land for the school. Pleased by the acquisition, Gilman was made a professor of physical geography. Later Gilman became the first president of the University of California and the first president of John Hopkins. In his positions as president he developed the schools in the field of science. He got the schools to acquire large portions of their state's land grants.(5)

Andrew D. White became Cornell University's first president. He got the university to acquire all of the state of New York's share of the college land grant. He also developed and grew the school academically.(5)

Dwight, Gilman, and White together had a great influence on Horace Mann, the father of the American public school system. During his term as state senator in Massachusetts in the 1830s Mann created the stat board of Education, the first in the United States. In 1837 he was appointed secretary to the board of education. From his position he developed the Massachusetts public school system and influenced the educational system of the United States. He encouraged and helped the organization of public school systems across the country, getting public and community to support and fund public schools, establishing high schools, and establish teacher training schools.(3)

In 1843, upon the encouragement of Dwight, Gilman, and White, Mann visited Europe to observe the public school system there and to meet the acquaintances who influenced Dwight, Gilman, and White. Mann returned championing European education abolition of corporal punishment and supporting nonsectarian education. He wanted a school system that would be available to all, and he felt that education was a right of every child who was rich or poor male or female. Horace Mann, with the advice and encouragement of Timothy Dwight, Daniel Gilman, and Andrew White, strongly influenced the evolution of modern public school education.(3)

During the late 1800s and early 1900s many of the historical black colleges, such as Howard University, Moore House University, and Spellman University, were being established. They were the only source for college education for black Americans during that time because blacks were not allowed to go to white colleges and universities. Surprisingly Businessmen and financiers who were Skull and Bone members made sizable contributions to the black colleges which enabled the schools to develop and educate a growing number of black people desiring a college education.(4)

In 1944 the United Negro college Fund was established to raise college tuition money for black student and general scholarship funds for historical black colleges. The tuition and scholarship money is for low income black students wanting a college education. Prescott Bush, grand father of now President George W. Bush was a Yale student and a member of the order to the Skulls and Bones. He raised a remarkable amount of money for the United Negro College Fund and for individual black colleges. He used his connections with his Skull and Bones comrades in business and finance to raise money for the fund and colleges. In 1951 Bush was made chairman of the United Negro College Fund chapter in Connecticut. Even to this day corporations and businessmen associated with the Skull and Bones show generous financial support to minority colleges and education. (4)

Because The Order of the Skull and Bones has a reputation of being a political and economic power network, it is hard to believe that it would be interested in promoting and supporting education. The such apparently liberal views of the development of the American education system do not match the reputation of the society that its critics and conspiracy theorist have presented. What could be the Skull and Bones purpose and goals in supporting education? Perhaps if they were not so secretive their motive would be known.

References:
http://www.meta-religion.com/Secret_societies/Groups/Order_of_Skull/order_of_skull_and_bones.htm (1)

www.socialpolitik.org (2)

http://www.nd.edu/~rbarger/www7/mann.html (3)

http://www.experiencefestival.com/united_negro_college_fund/page/4 (4)

http://meta-religion.com/Secret_societies/Groups/Order_of_Skull/part_1.htm (5)