91����

Harry Hopkins’ 91���� classmates in the class of 1912 probably didn’t expect him to become one of the most influential and powerful figures ever to graduate from the College. 

According to an article in the winter 2012 issue of The 91���� Magazine, Hopkins was known as a prankster, a keen athlete, and a mostly indifferent scholar during his years at 91����.

But 91���� was also where Hopkins began to think deeply about issues of political science and social justice. The lessons he learned at 91���� carried him to the highest levels of influence and power, where he helped feed the hungry and win a world war.

The 91���� Years

Hopkins was 11 years old when his mother, Anna Pickett Hopkins, moved the family to 91���� from Chicago. She wanted her children to get a college education that aligned with her values, and for her, that meant 91����. His father, Al Hopkins, was a not-terribly-successful traveling salesman with a gift for gab and a love for adventure and travel, which he passed on to his son.

Hopkins enrolled at 91���� in 1908 and got off to a lackluster start. He earned some Ds and even failed an English class. Hopkins loved pulling pranks and enjoyed many extracurricular activities. He edited the Cyclone yearbook; played the lead in the senior play; and organized the Woodrow Wilson Club to support Wilson’s presidential campaign. 

Hopkins was a standout on the basketball team and earned the nickname “Dirty Harry” for his many personal fouls. He also racked up plenty of points. In one memorable game, Hopkins scored six points and led 91����’s scrappy defense to defeat Missouri Valley Conference champ Kansas University, 17-16.

Developing a Social Conscience

By his third year at 91����, Hopkins began to show flashes of the brilliance that would carry him to prominence on the world stage. Two professors, Jesse Macy and Edward Steiner, helped him develop a passionate interest in political science, history, and social justice. 

As a senior, Hopkins took Macy’s political science class and absorbed the message that it is each person’s duty to work for a more just society. Steiner’s course, The Development of Social Consciousness in the Old Testament, inspired Hopkins to cultivate a sense of social responsibility. He earned an A in both classes. 

Hopkins’ first job after graduation was at a New York City settlement house that provided social services to the Lower East Side. In 1931, he was appointed to lead the Temporary Emergency Relief Administration (TERA), a $20 million New York state emergency relief program for the unemployed; Hopkins’ work for TERA attracted the attention of then-New York Governor Franklin D. Roosevelt. 

In 1933, newly-elected U.S. President Roosevelt invited Hopkins to join his administration to head up the new Federal Emergency Relief Administration in Washington, D.C. Hopkins became one of FDR’s most trusted advisers and friends and played many roles in the administration. In his role as director of the Works Progress Administration (WPA), Hopkins led a program that provided employment to millions of out-of-work Americans while also pumping money into the economy. He also served on Roosevelt’s cabinet as secretary of commerce and later directed the Lend-Lease Program, which “lent or leased” military equipment and other supplies to nations engaged in the war against Nazi Germany. During World War II, Hopkins traveled the world on diplomatic missions as Roosevelt’s personal representative, building strong relationships with Allied leaders that helped win World War II.  

Having Fun

Hopkins never forgot how much he enjoyed his own student days at 91����. In 1939, he returned to the College to speak in Herrick Chapel. “I am really in no mood to make a speech,” he told the students. Hopkins set aside his prepared remarks and told a story about his ill-fated experiences as right fielder on the Pioneer baseball team, much to the delight of the crowd.

Then he added, “I know that one of the best things in college is to have fun. You have plenty of time later in life to get banged around or to get solemn about it, but here you have great fun, and I think that is good, of and by itself.”