The early 1920s were a busy time on campus with the completion of many new buildings. The Physical Plant was completed in 1920, and the Willard Dorm for women, the Cafeteria and the Gymnasium were completed in 1922. It was also during this time that the academic standards for the institution rose to transform the Manual Training Normal School to be a more complete liberal arts college. To reflect this change, the state legislature in 1923 changed the name of the university to Kansas State Teachers College of Pittsburg.
In October 1920, Harold “Babe” Alyea founded the all-male pep squad known as the Gorillas. They oversaw the sale of season tickets, planned for special excursion trains to out-of-town games, sponsored rallies, picnics, and parades, and worked diligently on the fund-raising and construction of the Brandenburg Field that opened in 1924. It was on January 15th, 1925 that the student body voted to make the gorilla the official mascot for the college, making it the only college or university in the nation to have the gorilla as its mascot. The female students on campus also formed their own pep squad in 1920 known as the Boosterettes, but that name changed to be the Kampus Kats in 1923. This name change was consistent with the changing of the college’s name during this year.
As the decade came to an end, Brandenburg’s administration added a graduate school program to the college in 1929. It also created new administrative positions, such as the dean of men and the dean of women. During this time, the construction of Porter Library and McCray Hall were completed as well.
