Another early form of summer study which has greatly in fluenced the growth of summer schools was the Chautauqua summer assembly (see LYCEUMS AND CHAUTAUQUAS) which began with a ten-day session in 1874, enlisting the co-operation of many notable scholars and educators. One of these, William Rainey Harper, who conducted courses in Hebrew and in Ord Testament literature, became president of the University of Chicago in 1891. Moved by the success of his Chautauqua experience he provided for a university calendar which included four quarters of which the summer one was like each of the others, an integral part of the university year. Shortly thereafter other universities provided for summer sessions, many of them offering courses which could be counted toward the baccalaureate degree: 1893, University of Nebraska; 1894, University of Michigan; 1896, University of Illinois; 1897, Clark university, Cornell university, Ohio univer sity ; 1899, University of California ; 1900, Columbia university.
In 1911, the U.S. Bureau of Education reported the existence of 497 summer schools of which 28o granted credit toward degrees. This list, however, included normal schools and other teacher training institutions. Of 397 institutions which reported to the American Council on Education in 1926, 254 had summer sessions.
A few institutions, because the summer school is an integral part of the university calendar, offer courses in all departments. In 1926 at the University of Wisconsin 149 departments offered 438 courses; at Iowa State college 51 departments offered courses. The number of courses offered is even more significant than the number of departments; certain departments—notably English and Education—increasing their courses through the addition of temporary instructors from other institutions and even enlisting editors, school superintendents and other experts to conduct courses in their special fields. In 1925 Columbia offered
courses; Iowa 600; Wisconsin 438; West Virginia 365; Louisiana State 378; Kansas State Agricultural college 372; Massachusetts Institute of Technology 335; University of Indiana 319. Nine others offered more than 200 courses each, and 31 offered more than zoo courses each.
The length of the summer session varies. Institutions organiz ing their calendar on the four-quarter system usually offer a summer quarter between II and 12 weeks in length. The session at Columbia is six weeks in length. Harvard university offers a five weeks' session.
Enrolment in summer sessions reported for 1925 shows Colum bia to be by far the largest with 31,756 students in its 854 courses during six weeks of the summer of 1925. The University of Chicago during its regular summer quarter in 1925 enrolled 6,577 students. In 1926 during a similar period of two six-week terms the University of Minnesota enrolled 6,566. The University of Wisconsin in 1925 in its two terms, one of nine and one of five weeks, enrolled 5,015. The University of California in 1926 en rolled 4,976. Pennsylvania State college, the University of Iowa, the University of Texas, the University of Michigan and the College of the City of New York enrolled more than 3,00o each.