Photograph of Charles from College

Charles enrolled in the architecture program at Washington University in the fall of 1925. This portrait was taken during his first semester. He would soon be elected president of the first-year class. However, after a promising start, his time at university would be cut short when he was asked to leave in 1928, at the end of his sophomore year. The school taught traditional European models of architecture, leaving out modern American examples that Charles was drawn to. He was especially interested in the writings of Frank Lloyd Wright. Nonetheless, Charles appreciated the discipline he learned from the curriculum at Washington University.