This virtual will bring you to a life-sized statue of Willam Ogden "Doc" Farber (1910-2007), an influential and beloved political scientist and professor emeritus at the University of South Dakota. The site is on the USD campus, so during the academic year parking may be scarce - there is a waypoint below for nearby metered spots, or there is free parking on the surrounding city streets. There are permit-required lots nearby, but if you park there you do run the risk of being ticketed.
Doc Farber received his B.A. (cum laude and Phi Beta Kappa) and M.A. (Harris scholar) degrees from Northwestern University in Chicago and his Ph.D from the University of Wisconsin, Madison. Upon completion of his doctorate in 1935, he moved to Vermillion to begin his career as a professor of political science at USD. With the exception of a brief stint at North Dakota State University in 1936-37, Farber spent the rest of his career as chair of the Department of Government (now the Department of Political Science) at USD, officially retiring in 1976. During those 40 years he founded several organizations dedicated to advancing research in government, including the South Dakota Legislative Research Council (serving as its first director) and USD's Government Research Bureau. He also helped found USD's Institute of Indian Studies, where tribal leaders could come together and discuss issues they were facing. He was a leading member of South Dakota's Constitutional Revision and Local Government Study Commissions and the author of a number of articles and books.
It's not difficult to find signs of Doc Farber's lasting influence at USD. When nearby Old Main was renovated, the balconied lecture/concert hall at its core was christened Farber Hall (also the informal name of Doc's nearby home). The Farber Internship & Travel Fund provides scholarships and assistance for students to attend conferences, participate in study tours and internships, travel abroad and conduct research - all to enrich their educational experiences in accordance with Doc Farber's philosophy. Through the opportunities afforded to students via the fund, USD students have secured internships at all levels of national, state and local government and have been given the opportunity to engage in world-wide travel.
Doc's biggest legacy, though, might be the legions of young minds he challenged and shaped. Those closest to him - times being what they were, mostly men - became "Farber Boys." Their ranks include media personalities like Al Neuharth, Pat O'Brien, and Tom Brokaw, as well as politicians including U.S. Senators Larry Pressler and Tim Johnson, South Dakota Governors BIll Janklow and Dennis Daugaard, and U.S. Representative Dusty Johnson. Pressler was one of the six Rhodes Scholars who studied under Farber.
To log this virtual: message us the word on the middle line of the handwritten inscription on the back of the statue. This is a mandatory requirement--if answer is not received, your log will be deleted. DO NOT INCLUDE THE ANSWER IN YOUR LOG. Optional: take a photo of yourself with Doc and post it with your log.
While you're on campus (parked legally, of course) you can also grab an Earthcache, an Adventure Lab, a Wherigo, and a couple of traditionals.
Virtual Rewards 3.0 - 2022-2023
This Virtual Cache is part of a limited release of Virtuals created between March 1, 2022 and March 1, 2023. Only 4,000 cache owners were given the opportunity to hide a Virtual Cache. Learn more about Virtual Rewards 3.0 on the Geocaching Blog.