 Called by college historian William E. Sawyer the "Great Builder", Gee had increased the value of the school's physical plant from just over $2 million in 1947 to more than $22 million when he retired in 1966.In 1961, the college implemented an honors program for top students, giving them the opportunity to take "specially designed core courses" and write an honors thesis under the mentorship of select faculty.Structural changes to the college begun under Gee in the 1940s also continued during the ETSC era, with the Speech program moving from the Department of Journalism and Speech to the Department of Speech and Drama in 1966.