[1] In 1885, he went to DePauw University, serving as the head of the English program and working in the normal department.

[3] Tompkins came to ISNU after John W. Cook left to become the president at the Dekalb Normal School in 1899.

[6] He also worked to strengthen the faculty and improve the curriculum to better prepare students to become high school teachers.

There was a surplus of teachers, a long list of incoming cadets, a newly intensified courseload for students, and financial shortages.

[11] Tompkins died on August 14, 1905, in Menlo, Georgia, while on vacation from his job at the Chicago Normal School.