ae

The famous coach's inception of the program came while he was doing ©
graduate work at Columbia University. So six years ago, he set about to develop
it. The big handicap was, of course, that there were no funds available, Not to be
daunted, Allen proceeded upon the idea first to provide a place for mothers to bring
their children for cool and comfort. There were plenty of fine shade trees on lit.
Oread, so "Phog" made a deal with the athletic association to use their benches which
placed beneath the shade trees, and formed the nucleus of the whole scheme, There
mothers could bring their youngsters for play while the husbands and fathers occupied
their time in the Library.

The basic instincts of the human being's natural development—running,
jumping, leaping, vaulting, and climbing——formed the skeleton upon which the schedule
grew. Sandpiles, swings, and teeter-totters soon joined the benches—all with little
or no expense. Then provision had oe made for the climbing instinct—and at the
Monkey Maze in Philadelphia, the Kansas cage mentor got the idea for taking care of
that. The University had a lot of unused pipe, and with the aid of the University
machine shops, monkey maizes, more utilitarian than any on the market—and many
times less expensive—made their appearance among the playground equipment.

Prominent in the new program was instruction in community recreation and
classes in this subject were used to help construct the equipment for the playground.
Tt was fun for the students besides being just what they required educationally.

Early, Dr. Allen saw that outdoor drinking fountains were needed and
these were wangled out of budget committess. They were equipped with raised plat-—
forms so youngsters could help themselves without the assistance of their parents.

After the program had been in operation a year or two, summer school
authorities began to receive favorable comments from away from the campus and grew

enthusiastic about the whole program. Limited funds were made available and the ex-

pansion became rapidly visible, Shuffleboard courts were painted all over the side~

walks—cues were made from mop handles and pucks were turned in the University's

carpentering shop. They had to be painted and waxed to be of service, and here the

classes in community recreation again came to the rescue.