Cedarville College shall retain the Christian in– tegrity and truth which they bring with them to us and in all possible ways our example and teaching shall be set forth to strengthen and establish them in sound Christian faith 8 Fourth, McChesney's ideal college required a "loyal and grateful alumni." He called upon the alumni who "drank at the fountain of learning, grew strong and wise for the duties of life, and got inspiration which is the motive and blessing of their life " ." to remain faithful to their alma mater- He encouraged them to support and sustain their college and urged them that honorable alumni found virtue in "commending their alma mater rather than depending upon it to recommend them."9 Fifth, the ideal college needed the community. While admitting that the community was not directly connected with the college in the same manner in which other personal factors were, he nevertheless argued that it was the community which ultimately determined the success or failure of the institution. If the community did not provide an appropriate environment and significant support, it would be impossible for a college to succeed. He assured members of the community that their support for the college would be rewarded by the many benefits resulting from the presence of the college. Having thus outlined the material and personal elements necessary to an ideal college, McChesney concluded with still a third necessity: the ideal college must have "the highest ideals." The ideals which he upheld were citizenship, democracy, and godly character- He reminded his listeners that the material resources and personal elements were meaningful only as they cooperated in the development of character that was godly. This was, indeed, the special significance of a Christian college such as Cedarville. When McChesney became president of Cedarville College, he was eminently qualified to deal with the various personal and ideological elements to which he referred in his inaugural address. He was the first faculty member hired by the institution in 1894. The Trustees had appointed him Vice President in 1909 and Dean in 1913, before naming him President in 1915. In 1913, when the Reformed Presbyterian Theological Seminary was transplanted from Philadelphia to Cedarville, McChesney was assigned the task of teaching Greek and Systematic Theology to the young seminarians. Io However, McChesney had no experience in meeting the material needs of the institution. Whereas McKinney had the background of raising funds and managing assets for a local church congregation, McChesney had come to Cedarville directly from his own college Cedar Day, the oldest tradition of the College, in the late teens, early twenties. The festivities began with a presentation of the classes in pageant form, as seen here. Chapter VII/55