Dean John M. Watters

1917-1925

John Watters succeeded Wayne Kell as dean of the Evening School of Commerce in 1917. He moved the school from its first home on Walton Street to a larger space in the Peachtree Arcade in 1918. Enrollment continued to increase and Watters soon moved the school to yet another new building on Auburn Avenue in 1921.

Under Watters’ leadership, the Evening School toughened its academic standards and was admitted to the American Association of Collegiate Schools of Business. Watters also made sure that the school was tied into the Atlanta business community. He taught real estate courses in cooperation with a local realty group — believed to be the first such model in the nation — and had the School of Commerce conduct marketing surveys for area businesses.