Robert Sprague (1923-1924)
Files
Description
Robert Sprague, who had previously served as Dean at Rollins College, stepped in as Acting President from 1923 to 1924, as the College’s sixth president during a particularly challenging period in the college’s history. Facing severe financial difficulties and increasing competition from Florida’s expanding public college system, Sprague sought innovative solutions to ensure the institution's survival and growth.
One of his most ambitious proposals involved forming a partnership with the Southern Presbyterian Church, which had been exploring plans to establish a college in central Florida. Under Sprague’s plan, the Florida Presbyterian Synodical Committee would contribute $500,000 to Rollins’s endowment and construct several new buildings on campus. In exchange, the Presbyterians would be granted the right to appoint half of the college’s Board of Trustees.
This proposal, however, sparked concern from the Florida Congregational Association, which objected to the significant shift away from the college’s Congregational roots. In response, Sprague suggested a compromise—a joint governance model he called “Rollins Union,” in which both Presbyterians and Congregationalists would share control of the institution. He argued that this arrangement could establish Rollins as a leading center of Christian liberal education in the South.
Although the Congregational Association agreed to the union, the Presbyterians ultimately withdrew their support, abandoning the plan. Sprague had campaigned vigorously for the proposal, and its collapse significantly weakened his position. Without a path forward, the Board of Trustees began searching for a new president
First Year of Presidency
1923
Recommended Citation
Rollins College Archives and Special Collections, "Robert Sprague (1923-1924)" (1923). Rollins Presidents. 8.
https://scholarship.rollins.edu/presidents/8
