Chapter III - Department of Commerce

"In 1932, the college had about three hundred students exclusive of seminarians and, for a college of that size, the Department of Commerce seems to have been an ambitious undertaking beginning as it did with an initial offering of 79 credits, 24 in Accounting, 18 in Finance and 37 in Business Administration.  The courses in Finance and accounting varied from the introductuory level to the advanced but Business administration followed the same arrangement as in the early 1920s by offering only introductory courses in law, merchandising, statistics, business organization, economic geography and others.  This situation was to last for many years which was perhaps just as well because the curriculum of 1932 demanded many more credit hours than does the modern curriculum.

"Students majoring in Business Administration were required to take 140 credits!  Of these, 70 were in business courses while the other 70 were in required courses in the arts and sciences.  Those majoring in Accounting and Finance took only 134 credits.  All students took an additional eight courses (for no credit) in religion.  The degree offered initially was B.S.C., Bachelor of Science in Commerce, but this degree was never awarded to any graduates.

"All of the foregoing appeared in the 1932-1933 catalog but there was no listing of faculty at that time.  In the 1933-1934 catalog, Arthur Harkins, B.S.(Econ.), Villanova University, who was the assistant football coach at Bonaventure was named as the first faculty member with the rank of Instructor of Finance.  In that same year, the requirements for graduation were reduced to 128 credits, including 8 credits in religion, to conform to the New York State regulations and the title of the degree was changed to B.C.S., Bachelor of Commercial Science.  One can only conjecture whether the less than overwhelming response of the undergraduates to the original 178 hour requirement was as important as the State Education Department in bringing about the changes.  Also in 1933-1934, the name of Harry F. Joyce of Andover, New York, appeareed as an Assistant in Finance.  Since he was a transfer student from Bryant-Stratton in Buffalo, presumably his work was as the senior in charge of the accounting labs.

"Harry Joyce holds several firsts in Bonaventure history.  In addition to becoming the first undergraduate assistant in business, he was the first recipient of a business degree from Bonaventure.  In August of 1934, Mr. Joyce received his Bachelor of Commercial Science at the summer graduation ceremonies:  He then became the first St. Bonaventure graduate to become a faculty member in Commerce as he was named to be Assistant Professor of Finance.  Professor Joyce never did serve on the regular faculty, resigning from his appointment shortly before the September term began in order to join the Internal Revenue Service. (1)

"1. Prof. A. Jerome Miller of the Chemistry Department recalls that Mr. Joyce did teach part-time in the Evening School but was never listed in the school catalog."

Excerpted from: "The School of Business Administration, St Bonaventure University, The First Half-Century"
by Prof. Austin L. Finan

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