Co-op College History - Centre for the Study of Co-operatives

T HE C O-OPERATIVE I NSTITUTE
1955–1959
T HE D IRECTOR
HE CO-OP INSTITUTE’S FIRST PRIORITY WAS TO FIND
Ta principal—a person with a firm grounding in co-operative philosophy
combined with strong abilities in adult-education techniques. Hired for this position in 1955
was Harold Chapman, who had extensive experience with prairie co-operatives. Chapman
had just completed three years with the Royal Commission on Agriculture and Rural Life, a
project commissioned by the CCF government to analyze the state of rural society in Saskatchewan.
The work often included interviewing rural residents, organizing community meetings,
and synthesizing responses and ideas for government and public use. Chapman worked
with Bill Baker, a rural sociologist from the University of Saskatchewan, to develop practical
methods of adult education that encouraged the participation of rural communities. 18
Chapman had graduated from the University of Saskatchewan’s College of Agriculture
in 1943, and after two years in the army began work for the Department of Co-operation, assisting
with agricultural production co-operatives and the establishment of the Matador Cooperative
Farm. In 1949, he was a staff member of the Human Relations Institute at Valley
Centre in the Qu’appelle Valley. This institute had a history as a centre for community development
in the province, as a location for the Farmer-Labour-Teacher workshops, and the
CUS-directed co-op schools. 19 Chapman’s knowledge of the co-operative movement in
Saskatchewan through his early government extension work, as well as his work with the
royal commission, equipped him admirably for the principalship of the new Co-op Institute.
It was an FCL classroom in Saskatoon that housed the first Co-op Institute class; the
topic was lumber merchandizing, a short course that began in late November 1955. Retail
co-op employees who attended included Bert Seib, manager of Lipton Co-op, Mel
O CCASIONAL P APERS S ERIES #01–01