Historical/Biographical Note
From the time of its founding in 1832 to the late 1800's, New York University functioned with a highly centralized administration. A chancellor, often the only administrator, governed a small body of students and an independent minded faculty during the University's early years when it was often on the brink of insolvency. But toward the end of the century, the University experienced a period of financial stability that enabled the building of a second campus in the Heights and the opening of several new schools. Along with changes in size came changes in structure, as the central administration became increasingly decentralized and schools began to more forcefully articulate their particular needs and goals. A catalog for 1881 lists a Chancellor as the only administrative officer, while one for 1904 lists a Chancellor, a Syndic, a Registrar and an Assistant Treasurer, showing the growth of the administration over a relatively short period of time.
For the first half of the 20th century the central administration operated primarily as the budget and fund raising coordinator, entrusting school deans with the authority to govern in educational matters. While the schools operated under varying degrees of autonomy, they typically formed their closest links with the central administration over budgetary concerns; therefore policy was largely administered through the budget. At times contentious and disorganized, this system nevertheless succeeded in steering the University through several depressions and periods of enormous growth, particularly in the years between the two world wars. When financial difficulties peaked in the 1950's the University once again sought administrative changes; it attempted to unify its diverse schools and reevaluate its educational role, beginning with a series of structural modifications in the late 1950's under the auspices of Chancellor Henry T. Heald and the New York University Self-Study Plan.
Heald began a process of centralization upon taking office in 1951. He found the administration's history of making decisions based on budgetary demands to be at odds with the goals of an institution for higher learning. Heald sought to put forth a policy emphasizing essential educational objectives at a time when the University's rapid growth threatened academic development. In order to preserve the accomplishments achieved through expansion and at the same time execute greater control over educational policy, Heald bolstered the ranks of the central administration by appointing David D. Henry to the newly created position of Executive Vice Chancellor in 1952. Henry assumed the duties of the discontinued office of the Provost and served as the chief educational officer of the University. Shortly thereafter, Heald appointed an assistant to the Executive vice Chancellor for University Development.
The grant funded Self-Study, an exhaustive analysis of the University's policies and practices, outlined a new administrative organization as part of a comprehensive, long range plan. In affirming centralized authority, the Self Study prompted the revision of executive titles: the Chancellor became the President, Vice Chancellors became Vice Presidents, and the University Council became the Board of Trustees. In addition, the Self-Study recommended the establishment of all-University departments that resulted in diminishing the autonomy of the schools, in some cases creating an atmosphere of opposition and uncertainty.
A financial crisis in the 1960's generated fundamental changes in University policy. With city and state schools offering less expensive tuitions, NYU could no longer function as the alternative to privileged institutions in New York. In 1962, under President James Hester, the University applied for and received a $25 million Ford Foundation development grant that was used to promote an "urban" identity and attract students of a new rank and quality. More selective admissions, the recruitment of graduate, professional and full time students, and advanced degree faculty, established the character of the present day University. In addition, the Ford Foundation report led to further consolidation as undergraduate units were merged into a coordinated liberal arts program. Although deans did regain some of their lost power by winning the elimination of the Executive Deanship and by having budgetary authority returned to them in the mid 1960's, no further accrual of power to the deans occurred.
In 1960 the Board of Trustees amended the bylaws to change the title of the Executive Vice President to Chancellor and Executive Vice President (G/EVP). Although the new title did not bring with it a change in duties, it more accurately reflected the C/EVP's position as second in command, while indicating that the Office of the C/EVP was endowed with the University's original conception of the Chancellor: the head of the faculty; the chief liaison between faculty, students and Board of Trustees; and the officer to recommend faculty.
The C/EVP serves as the academic alter-ego of the President. As chief of University Operations, the C/EVP supervises schools and divisions, student housing, special programs, relations with the State and Federal Departments of Education, and training programs like the now defunct ROTC. He or she is in charge of most "internal organizational problems," while also attending to related educational activities outside the immediate needs of the University, such as educational television and various research projects. In addition, the C/EVP oversees the Academic Council (later changed to the Dean's Council, then the Committee of Deans), a small, advisory group resulting from a self-study recommendation and consisting of high ranking officers who are each "responsible for a major segment of the University's educational program, as to policy and administration." The Office of Institutional Research and Educational Planning has operated up until 1975, under the authority of the C/EVP.
David Dodds Henry, 1952-1955
David D. Henry was named the first Executive Vice Chancellor of NYU in September of 1952. During his tenure he served as chairperson of the Metropolitan New York Educational Agencies Committee on Television, and two other committees on educational television, sponsored by the American council on Education. In addition, he was a member of the Special Committee for Rubber Research of the National Science Foundation, and a member of the National Planning Association. Henry frequently lectured on educational T.V., the use of computers in education, and the university in an urban environment. In 1955 Henry left NYU to assume the presidency of the University of Illinois.
Carroll Vincent Newsom, 1955-1956
Carroll Newsom was appointed to succeed David Henry in July of 1955. Newsom brought a distinguished career in education, as mathematics professor and administrator, to NYU. He was subsequently elected president of the University at the time of Henry Heald's resignation in September of 1956. Newsom resigned as President in September of 1961 and became a senior Vice President at Prentice Hall Publishers.
John Eli Ivey, Jr., 1957-1959
John Ivey, formerly a sociologist at the University of North Carolina, was appointed Executive Vice President of NYU in March of 1957. Ivey supported many special projects and exploratory programs at NYU, expanding his position and the scope of the central administration. He resigned in September, 1959 and later became Dean of the College of Education and Professor of Sociology at Michigan State University.
George Dinsmore Stoddard, 1960-1964
George Stoddard, a psychologist and former president of the University of Illinois, came to NYU in 1953 after diplomatic service with the post-war educational mission to Japan. Before becoming Chancellor and Executive Vice President in January of 1960, Stoddard directed the HYU self-Study and served as Dean of the School of Education. He played a central role in constructing a new hierarchy of administrative offices that centralized educational policy and budgetary control. In 1964, Stoddard resigned to become Distinguished Professor of Education.
Russell Denison Niles, 1964-1966
Russell Niles' long association with NYU began in 1929, when he joined the University as an assistant law professor. He became Dean of the School of Law in 1948, and was named Chancellor and Executive Vice President in February of 1964. He resigned in 1966 to become President of the Bar of the City of New York. Niles continued many of the policies of Stoddard, and was an important influence in helping to further centralize and strengthen the administration.
Sources:
Barrett, Ellen. "Inventory of the Records of John E.Ivey, Jr., 1957-1959," NYU Archives, 1981.
Cricco, Nancy. "Inventory to the Records of the George E. Stoddard and Russell D. Niles Administrations, 1963-1965," NYU Archives, 1988.
Sabol, Maria. "Inventory to the Records of David D. Henry, 1952-1956," NYU Archives, 1981.
Still, Bayrd. "Evolution of Organization of General Administrative Offices, 1880-1978," NYU Archives, 1978.
Return to topScope and Content Note
The administrative records of the Office of the Chancellor and Executive Vice President (RG 6.0) measure approximately 32 linear feet and span the years 1952-1966. The records were processed in ten different segments for the purposes of student assignments. The material has now been merged into one cohesive collection, and access is provided by this guide.
The records consist of correspondence, circular memoranda, minutes, reports, meeting notes, policy statements and analyses, evaluations, press releases, printed material, newspaper clippings, surveys and questionnaires, and a few photographs. Original order-alphabetical in most instances-- has been maintained, and the series generally reflect the manner in which the documents were originally filed. Folder contents have been arranged chronologically.
The collection has been divided into five subgroups, representing each of the Chancellor and Executive Vice Presidents, with the exception of David Henry and Carroll Newsom, who have been combined into one subgroup due to the paucity of the Newsom material and an inability, in some cases, to differentiate between tenures (see series note below). In addition, a small portion of records generated in the final months of the George Stoddard administration were originally interfiled with the bulk of the Russell Niles' papers and have been maintained that way for reasons of continuity and logic (see series note below). Within each subgroup the material has been further divided into series and subseries according to original order. Series titles generally reflect the original file titles and have been changed only when it was necessary to highlight a particular grouping and facilitate access without disturbing the inherent arrangement.
Each subgroup consists of administrative series that serve as a record of the day-to-day activities of the Chancellor and Executive Vice President. The administrative files differ only slightly in format from one officer to the next, but when viewed as a progression, reveal many of the changes taking place at NYU during the tumultuous years of the Self-Study and the Ford Foundation Grant Initiatives. For instance, all-university departments first appeared during the Ivey administration in the late 1950's, and one can trace the acquisition of new facilities and the demise of the University Heights Campus.
David Henry and Carroll Newsom were pioneers in the field of educational television, and a separate series by that name records their leadership and commitment in this field. But, in general, the records indicate that their successors were more venturesome, more inclined to pursue educational interests outside of the University-forging ties with international associations and working more closely with state and federal governments. In part, these characteristics are a result of differences in personality, but more importantly, the records suggest that the office grew to a position of increased authority, covering a greater range of activities. The series notes that follow demonstrate the evolution of the Office of the Chancellor and Executive Vice President from chief educational officer to head of University operations.
Return to top
Arrangement |
||
| Folders are arranged chronologically. | ||
| The files are grouped into five subgroups. | ||
| I, David D. Henry and Carroll V. Newsom | ||
| II, John E. Ivey Jr. | ||
| III, George D. Stoddard | ||
| IV, Russell D. Niles | ||
| V, Inventory of Minutes and Reports | ||
Related Material at the New York University Archives
Personal Papers of Carroll Newsom 1924-1986
Records of the Office of the President/Chancellor New York University 1951-1965
Return to topSeparated Material
There is no information about materials that are associated by provenance to the described materials that have been physically separated or removed.
Return to topRestrictions
Access Restrictions
Open for research without restrictions.
Use Restrictions
Permission to publish materials must be obtained in writing from the:
New York University Archives
Elmer Holmes Bobst Library
70 Washington Square South
New York, NY 10012
Phone: (212) 998-2646
Fax: (212) 995-4070
E-mail: university.archives@library.nyu.edu
Return to top
Administrative Information
Provenance
The collection was physically transferred in August of 1975 from a storage area in Vanderbilt Hall to the University Archives.
Preferred Citation
Published citations should take the following form:
Identification of item, date (if known); The Office of the Chancellor and Executive Vice President; RG# 6.0; box number; folder
number;
New York University Archives
Elmer Holmes Bobst Library
70 Washington Square South
New York, NY 10012, New York University Libraries.
Container List
[The following section contains a detailed listing of the materials in the collection.]