Originally Printed in 1927

By Mrs. R.J. Hering

(Special Correspondent to The Journal)

Orchard, Neb., April 24, 1927 – This town has always taken a keen interest in the education of

its young people, and the return of Miss Olive Fletcher from the University of Nebraska,

Lincoln, with a master’s degree, recalls the remarkable progress she has made.

At the age of 5 she entered the schools here and four years later, when most children

would have entered fourth grade, Olive passed the state examination and was ready for high

school, having done eight years in four.

There were many who thought that a child so young should not be allowed to enter high

school, but that she should either be kept out of school a year at least, or be required to remain in

the grades since she surely could not be mature enough to do high school work.

Nevertheless, Olive entered high school and four years later, in June 1922, at the age of

13, she received her diploma, the youngest graduate from this school up to that time, and she still

holds the record.

In the fall of that year, she entered Nebraska Wesleyan University, Lincoln, and then took

three years’ work in the University of Nebraska. On June 5, 1926, her 18 th birthday, she received

an A.B. degree.

Following this, she took one and a half years’ work at the university and has just returned

home with a master’s degree. Except for the fact that she was out of school for a couple weeks

on account of sickness, she would have received her degree at the close of the first semester. She

majored in English for both degrees. The name of the thesis she wrote for the master’s degree

was “Samuel Butler, the Novelist.”

Miss Fletcher is a member of the Sigma Kappa sorority and was chapter correspondent

for “The Triangle,” the sorority magazine for more than two years and was elected as delegate to

the convention in 1926.

During the time spent at the university, Miss Fletcher was active in musical circles,

studying music while doing postgraduate work. She has played the piano since childhood. For

two years she broadcast from a radio station in Lincoln and was known as “the commander-in-

chief of the ivories.”

Miss Fletcher says at present she has no plans for the future, except that she still is

interested in school and may take more graduate work at some future date. She is the eldest child

and only daughter of Mr. and Mrs. J.T. Fletcher. Mr. Fletcher is grand master of the I.O.O.F. in

Nebraska.