History of GSU 1969-79 Ted F

Governors State University OPUS Open Portal to University Scholarship University Anniversaries & Historical Documents University Archives 1980 History of GSU 1969-79 Ted F. Andrews Governors State University Follow this and additional works at: http://opus.govst.edu/anniv Recommended Citation Andrews, Ted F., "History of GSU 1969-79" (1980). University Anniversaries & Historical Documents. Paper 5. http://opus.govst.edu/anniv/5 This Article is brought to you for free and open access by the University Archives at OPUS Open Portal to University Scholarship. It has been accepted for inclusion in University Anniversaries & Historical Documents by an authorized administrator of OPUS Open Portal to University Scholarship. For more information, please contact [email protected]. “A community without history is like a person without a memory – incoherent.” Bernard Bailyn FOR Dwayne, Dwight, Glen, and Ken and Betty HISTORY OF GSU 1969-79 Ted F. Andrews PREFACE I. EARLY HISTORY: PRE-STUDENT ERA II. ORGANIZATIONAL STRUCTURES: ADMINISTRATIVE OFFICES III. PHYSICAL FACILITIES IV. COLLEGES AND SCHOOLS V. ACADEMIC PROGRAMS VI. FACULTY AND STUDENTS VII. GOVERNANCE SYSTEMS AND COLLECTIVE BARGAINING VIII. BUDGETS: OPERATING AND CAPITAL IX. ASSOCIATIONS, CENTERS AND SPECIAL OFFICES X. SPECIAL EVENTS AND ACTIVITIES XI. UNIVERSITY PUBLICATIONS XII. EDITORIAL COMMENTARY XIII. APPENDICES In 1966 the Illinois Board of Higher Education (BHE) recommended that an institution for commuting college students should be established in the Chicagoland area and that new model of higher education would be developed by the new University. As a result of the recommendation by the BHE, Governors State University was founded on July 17, 1969 as an upper division institution of higher education when Governor Ogilvie signed House Bill 666 into law at Olympia Fields Country Club. The first President of the University was William E. Engbretson who served from July 1969 through August 1976. During President Engbretson’s era the University was founded, 753 acres of land purchased for the campus site, all systems to support and operate a non-traditional experimenting University developed and the University operated with students from September 1971 until August, 1976, when Dr. Engbretson left the University. He was succeeded by Leo Goodman-Malamuth II, who became President on September 1, 1976, a position he still held in 1979-80 when this history was written. President Goodman-Malamuth’s era was to witness significant administrative changes and academic reorganization. In 1977, the President reorganized the administrative structure at the University level, but left the organization of the Colleges unchanged. The administrative reorganization established the first office of provost and Vice-president for Academic Affairs. In August, 1977, Curtis L. McCray was appointed Provost, and Academic Vice-President for Administration, positions that each of them still holds. With a new Provost and new Vice- President for Administration in place, the President initiated discussions towards reorganization of the colleges and charged the Provost with overseeing the reorganization. In September, 1979, a new academic organization was in place having been approved by the Board of Governors of State Colleges and Universities (BOG) in July 1979. Two of the four original colleges, the College of Environmental and Applied Sciences and the College of Cultural Studies, were merged into a new College of Arts and Sciences. The School of Health Sciences which had been a component of the College of Environmental and Applied Sciences was established as a School of Health Professions with a Director whose position was -2- comparable to that of a Dean of a College. The name of the College of Business and Public Service was changed to the College of Business and Public Administration. The academic programs in the Colleges were grouped into Divisions each headed by an Administrator called a Chairperson. These changes constituted the first significant academic structural reorganization in the history of the University. I had joined the professional staff of the University as a University Professor of Life Sciences and Dean in September, 1969. During the pre-student era, 1969 to 1971, I served as the primary academic administrator while we recruited faculty and other academic administrators and developed all University systems. Except for an 18 month period in 1975-76 and 1976-77, when I served ass Acting Vice-President for Academic Affairs, I served as Dean of the College of Environmental and Applied Sciences from September 1969 through August 1979 the time that the College of Cultural Studies and the College of Environmental and Applied Sciences were merged as a result of the academic reorganization. The Provost suggested that I assume the responsibility for writing a history of the first 10 years of the University. Since I had been at the University longer than any other person, it seemed to be a reasonable and challenging assignment. I was appointed Special Assistant to the Provost from September 1, 1979, through December 31, 1979. My primary assignment was to write the history of Governors State University, a task that was about 40% completed at the end of December. On January 1, 1980, I returned to the faculty in the Division of Science with released time to complete writing the history of Governors State University. This history includes the period from July, 1969 through December, 1979, ten years and four months. I elected to write a factual history, minimizing my editorial comments as much as feasible. Although personalities play an important role in a social, academic organization such as a University, I decided that it would not serve a usefully purpose to readers of this history if I were to deal with personalities. Most of the faculty and administrators were outstanding scholars, true intellectuals; a few were non-scholars -3- and truly deviate. The historical accounts are organized into 12 Chapters: I. Early History: Pre-Student Era. The highlights of the two planning years are treated in an attempt to describe the number and kind of people and agencies involved in converting corn and soybean fields into a functioning University unlike others that existed. II. Organizational Structures: Administrative Offices. The evolution of each administrative office, the name and term of office of each administrator are discussed from the beginning when there was only a President until there was a complex University with all administrative offices functioning. III. Physical Facilities. The number and kinds of temporary buildings rented, the parcels of land purchased, the permanent buildings constructed and the special physical facilities on the campus site during the 10 years are described. IV. Colleges and School. The philosophy, goals, academic thrusts, and academic program names in 1971 and in 1978 are described and changes resulting from the 1979 academic reorganization are highlighted. V. Academic Programs. The evolutionary history of the initial academic programs approved in 1979, the second constitutions of the University, the roles of faculty in governance, and the impact of collective bargaining on faculty and administrators are described. VI. Faculty and Students. Demographic data of faculty in 1971, 1975 and 1979, information on degrees, tenure and sabbatical leaves, and distribution of faculty by Colleges/Schools and academic programs are summarized. Student characteristics, perceptions and demographic information and enrollment distribution of faculty by Colleges/Schools and academic programs are summarized. -4- VII. Budgets: Operating and Capital. The capital and operating budgets by year are summarized. VIII. Associations, Centers and Special Offices. The history and function of more than 20 non-academic entities, such as Child Care Center, Publications Office, Financial Aids Office, Grants Office, etc., that provide support services are described. IX. Special Events and Activities. More than a dozen special events, such as Groundbreaking, Commencement, YMCA/GSU, etc., are treated. X. University Publications. A list of annotated publications by the University of Groups representing the University is presented. President Goodman-Malamuth and Provost McCray have been personally and professionally supportive of my efforts to write this history. Provost McCray provided funds to support part-time secretarial services while this history was in preparation. Nancy Keane typed the entire manuscript, some parts many times. She also prepared the index, proof-read the manuscript, and assisted in preparation of the bibliography. I could not have written this history without the dedicated assistance of Mrs. Keane. Perhaps in 1990 someone will write a history of the second decade of Governors State University. The University devoted the first decade to establishing its credibility as a legitimate upper division institution of higher education. It appears that the second decade will be dedicated to survival in a society that is enduring an enormous annual rate of inflation and a changing body politic that has expectations of a University that may be difficult to fulfill. Ted Andrews August 1980 TABLE OF CONTENTS Introduction Board of Higher Education The First Professional Staff Brainstorming Conference Planning Agencies and Groups Planning Publications Directors of Academic Development “Squatters” Conferences Educational Planning Guidelines GSU Mission GSU Objectives and Characteristics GSU Postulates

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