This year, UW–Madison Housing hired more than 200 house fellows, which is about 200 more than there were in 1925. That’s because the house fellow program didn’t exist yet. It officially began in 1926, and this year marks the program’s 100th anniversary. When the university prepared to open its first on-campus men’s residence hall since the 1884 Science Hall fire — which caused a shortage of classroom space, leading the UW to convert North and South Halls from dorms to academic buildings — leaders looked to the residential colleges of Oxford and Cambridge for inspiration.  As early as his 1904 inaugural address, Charles Van Hise 1879, 1880, MS1882, PhD1892 expressed his desire for the UW to model itself after the “collegiate way,” envisioning communities where students would live, learn, and build relationships, not simply places to sleep. Early plans called for residence halls to be divided into smaller houses with common rooms and about 30 residents each. The residence halls were originally intended only for freshmen, but the planning committee ultimately decided that each house would benefit from an older student leader who could “aid the younger men by example, by counsel, and by friendly interest.” That idea evolved into the house fellow system. By September 21, 1926, 500 freshmen had moved into the university’s new Adams and Tripp Halls and were eating their meals in the refectory, now called the Carson Gulley Center. While the role has evolved over the past century, today’s fellows continue that original mission and help make a house feel like home for their residents.

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