George_P._Hays_(college_president)
George Price Hays was the 2nd president of Washington & Jefferson College.[1]
Hays was born in Miller's Run, Pennsylvania on February 2, 1838.[1] He studied at Jefferson College, graduating in 1857, and at the Western Theological Seminary (now Pittsburgh Theological Seminary).[1] He was licensed to preach in 1859. Hays continued his education and earned Doctor of Divinity degree from Lafayette College in 1870 and a LL.D. from Hanover College.[1]
He was elected second president of Washington & Jefferson College on August 3, 1870.[1] The inauguration was held on September 21, 1870, in the Town Hall at Washington, Pennsylvania.[1] In 1875, the college began the expanding "Old Main" by adding a third floor and two towers, at a cost of $65,000.[1] By 1877, the costs reached a total of $73,196.51.[1] By 1878, the board of trustees was forced to reduce the salaries of the professors and the president.[1] Hays submitted his resignation on December 18, 1878, but the Board of Trustees declined to accept it.[1] On March 26, 1879, President Hays took a leave of absence without pay.[1] On June 20, 1881, the Board of Trustees accepted Hays' resignation and he returned to the ministry full-time, preaching in Denver, Cincinnati, and Kansas City.[1]
