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Deciphering Franklin D. Roosevelt's Educational Policies During the Great Depression (1933-1940)

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Deciphering Franklin D. Roosevelt's Educational Policies During the Great Depression (1933-1940) Georgia State University ScholarWorks @ Georgia State University Educational Policy Studies Dissertations Department of Educational Policy Studies 1-10-2014 Deciphering Franklin D. Roosevelt's Educational Policies During the Great Depression (1933-1940) Permeil Dass Follow this and additional works at: https://scholarworks.gsu.edu/eps_diss Recommended Citation Dass, Permeil, "Deciphering Franklin D. Roosevelt's Educational Policies During the Great Depression (1933-1940)." Dissertation, Georgia State University, 2014. https://scholarworks.gsu.edu/eps_diss/105 This Dissertation is brought to you for free and open access by the Department of Educational Policy Studies at ScholarWorks @ Georgia State University. It has been accepted for inclusion in Educational Policy Studies Dissertations by an authorized administrator of ScholarWorks @ Georgia State University. For more information, please contact [email protected]. ACCEPTANCE PAGE The Dissertation, DECIPHERING FRANKLIN D. ROOSEVELT’S EDUCATIONAL POLICIES DURING THE GREAT DEPRESSION (1933-1940), by PERMEIL DASS, was prepared under the direction of the candidate’s Dissertation Advisory Committee. It is accepted by the committee members in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree Doctor of Philosophy in the College of Education, Georgia State University. The Dissertation Advisory Committee and the student’s Department Chair, as representatives of the faculty, certify that this dissertation has met all standards of excellence and scholarship as determined by the faculty. The Dean of the College of Education concurs. ______________________________ ______________________________ Deron Boyles, Ph.D. Philo Hutcheson, Ph.D. Committee Chair Committee Member ______________________________ ______________________________ Chara Bohan, Ph.D. Michelle Brattain, Ph.D. Committee Member Committee Member ______________________________ Date ______________________________ William Curlette, Ph.D. Chair, Department of Educational Policy Studies ______________________________ Paul A. Alberto, Ph.D. Interim Dean College of Education AUTHOR’S STATEMENT By presenting this dissertation as a partial fulfillment of the requirements for the advanced degree from Georgia State University, I agree that the library of Georgia State University shall make it available for inspection and circulation in accordance with its regulations governing materials of this type. I agree that permission to quote, to copy from, or to publish this dissertation may be granted by the professor under whose direction it was written, by the College of Education's director of graduate studies and research, or by me. Such quoting, copying, or publishing must be solely for scholarly purposes and will not involve potential financial gain. It is understood that any copying from or publication of this dissertation which involves potential financial gain will not be allowed without my written permission. _________________________________ Permeil Dass NOTICE TO BORROWER’S All dissertations deposited in the Georgia State University library must be used in accordance with the stipulations prescribed by the author in the preceding statement. The author of this dissertation is: Permeil Dass [email protected] 2581 Wood Valley Drive East Point, GA 30344 The director of this dissertation is: Dr. Deron Boyles Department of Educational Policy Studies College of Education Georgia State University Atlanta, GA 30303 CURRICULUM VITAE Permeil Dass [email protected] 2581 Wood Valley Drive East Point, GA 30344 EDUCATION: Ph.D. 2013 Georgia State University Educational Policy Studies M.A.T. 2000 Kent State University Teaching & Learning B.A. 1996 Oberlin College Neuroscience PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE: 2011-Present Science Teacher Sandy Creek High School Fayette County, GA 2000-2011 Science Teacher Creekside High School Fulton County, GA PRESENTATION AND PUBLICATIONS: Dass, Permeil. “The Automobile Industry’s Influence on Adolescents’ Choice of Transportation: How Marketing Techniques Are Used to Cultivate Consumers of Automobiles.” In The Corporate Assault on Youth: Commercialism, Exploitation, and the End of Innocence, edited by Deron Boyles. New York, NY: Peter Lang, 2008. PROFESSIONAL SOCIETIES AND ORGANIZATIONS: American Educational Research Association ABSTRACT DECIPHERING FRANKLIN D. ROOSEVELT’S EDUCATIONAL POLICIES DURING THE GREAT DEPRESSION (1933-1940) by Permeil Dass Franklin Delano Roosevelt (FDR) was the longest serving president in the history of the United States, and he served during the U.S.’s worst economic crisis. During his tenure, approximately 80,000 public school teachers were left unemployed and 145,700 students had their schools closed. Furthermore, public schools and their teachers were under attack for the large number of unemployed and illiterate people. Despite these public school challenges, the literature rarely mentions FDR’s reactions or thoughts; instead, the literature focuses on the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) and the National Youth Administration (NYA), two New Deal youth programs. The New Deal assisted many institutions, and educators assumed public schools would also receive assistance. Under FDR, the federal government became increasingly involved in the lives of its citizens in terms of housing, food, transportation, and employment, but it did not increase its involvement in education. In this dissertation, I decipher FDR’s educational policies by analyzing his administrative actions that supported or hindered education from 1933- 1940. In particular, did FDR’s governmental programs emphasize or encourage the education of youth? Did his administrative decisions support public schools? What was FDR’s policy towards federal aid to education and why? Additionally, by analyzing how educational policies were developed within FDR’s administration, educators today will better discern how they can influence policies during each step of the policymaking process. In doing so, educators will be better prepared and positioned to support American schools. DECIPHERING FRANKLIN D. ROOSEVELT’S EDUCATIONAL POLICIES DURING THE GREAT DEPRESSION (1933-1940) by Permeil Dass A Dissertation Presented in Partial Fulfillment of Requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Educational Policy Studies in the Department of Educational Policy Studies in the College of Education Georgia State University Atlanta, GA 2013 Copyright by Permeil Dass 2013 ACKNOWLEDGMENTS I would first like to thank Dr. Hutcheson for continuing to advise me after he was promoted to Department Chair of Educational Leadership, Policy, and Technology Studies in the College of Education at the University of Alabama. His expertise in the history of education was invaluable in shaping this dissertation. I would also like to thank Dr. Boyles who encouraged me to begin the doctoral program and helped me through the comprehensive exams. I am grateful to have Dr. Bohan and Dr. Brattain on my committee who helped me consider the larger historical implications of my work. My family and friends have been supportive of me and I would not have been able to complete this without them. I would like to especially thank my husband, Lukasz Trzuskawski, who persevered with me throughout the process. ii TABLE OF CONTENTS Page Abbreviations ................................................................................................................ iv Chapter 1 INTRODUCTION..........................................................................................1 Research Questions and Methodology .........................................................4 The Policymaking Process ...........................................................................7 FDR’s Policymaking Process ......................................................................8 2 NEW DEAL PROGRAMS WITH EDUCATIONAL COMPONENTS ........ 16 Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) .......................................................... 16 National Youth Administration (NYA) ...................................................... 33 Emergency Educational Program (EEP) .................................................... 45 Analysis of FDR’s Educational Policies in New Deal Programs ................ 54 3 EDUCATIONAL ADVOCATES AND RESEARCHERS ........................... 59 FDR and the Office of Education............................................................... 61 FDR and his Relationship with Educators .................................................. 71 President’s Advisory Committee on Education .......................................... 86 Analysis of FDR and Educational Advocates and Researchers ................... 92 4 FDR, CONGRESS, AND FEDERAL AID TO EDUCATION ..................... 99 73rd Congress .......................................................................................... 100 74th Congress ........................................................................................... 111 75th Congress ........................................................................................... 120 76th Congress ........................................................................................... 129 Analysis of FDR, Congress, and Federal Aid to Education ...................... 133 5 SUMMARY AND CONCLUSION ............................................................ 142 References ................................................................................................................... 154 iii ABBREVIATIONS AFT American Federation of Teachers AFL American
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