Academia's golden age : universities in Massachusetts, 1945-1970 / Richard M. Freeland.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Freeland, Richard M., 1941-

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Education, Higher--Massachusetts--Boston--History.

Education, Higher.

Universities and colleges--Massachusetts--Boston--History.

Universities and colleges.

History.

Massachusetts--Boston.

Physical Description:

xii, 532 pages ; 25 cm

Place of Publication:

New York : Oxford University Press, 1992.

Summary:

The quarter century following World War II was a "golden age" for American universities. Students enrolled in record numbers, financial support was readily available, and campuses flourished in a climate of public approval. In the mid-1960s, however, the picture began to change. Student unrest and unexpected financial problems stirred apprehension within higher education and questioning by government officials and other outsiders--an atmosphere that was reinforced in the 1970s by softening student demand, rising college costs, and new concerns about institutional effectiveness. Academia's Golden Age provides the first comprehensive assessment of change among universities in the postwar years, a period that set the framework for contemporary worries about American schools at every level. Combining a general review of national trends with a close study of individual campuses, Freeland provides a fresh perspective on a vital period of educational history and a revealing look at the inner workings of the nation's academic system. Broad analytic chapters examine major developments like expansion, the rise of graduate education and research, the professionalization of the faculty, and the neglect of undergraduate teaching. Additional chapters focus on eight campuses in Massachusetts--Harvard, M.I.T., Brandeis, Tufts, Boston College, Boston University, Northeastern and the University of Massachusetts--to illustrate patterns of change at research universities, college-centered universities, urban private universities, and public universities. Academia's Golden Age can be enjoyed by a wide readership on several levels. For the general reader it provides an illuminating one-volume survey ofhigher education in the post-World War II period. For scholars and specialists it offers an in-depth analysis of a complex time. For those interested in particular institutions it includes concise portraits unavailable elsewhere. All audiences will appreciate the book's wealth of information, readable prose, and balanced assessment of academia's performance during years of maximum opportunity.

Contents:

1. Academic Development and Social Change: Higher Education in Massachusetts before 1945 17

Prologue: Three Centuries of College Building, 1636-1929 18

Historical Dynamics of Academic Change 35

The Long Pause, 1929-1945: University Development in Depression and War 51

2. The World Transformed: A Golden Age for American Universities, 1945-1970 70

Academic Ideas and Developmental Opportunities in the Postwar Years 70

The Three Revolutions: Enrollments, Finances, and Faculty 86

Disarray and Reassessment: A Second Debate on Academic Values 97

Part 2 Institutions

3. Emergence of the Modern Research University: Harvard and M.I.T., 1945-1970 123

From Depression to Prosperity: The Early Postwar Years 123

Consolidating the New Focus: Research and Graduate Education 139

The Economics of Academic Progress 148

Undergraduate Education in the Research University 154

Organizational Dimensions of Academic Change 161

The Old Order Changes 172

4. Evolution of the College-centered University: Tufts and Brandeis, 1945-1970 179

The Postwar Years at Tufts 179

The Founding of Brandeis 185

Institutional Mobility in the Early Golden Age 192

The 1960s at Tufts 201

The 1960s at Brandeis 207

Organization, Leadership, and Institutional Change 212

Dilemmas of the College-centered University 223

5. Transformation of the Urban University: Boston University, Boston College, and Northeastern, 1945-1972 234

Postwar Boom: Veterans, Growth, and Capital Accumulation 234

Shifting Emphasis in the 1950s 242

The "Bonanza Years" at Boston College 251

The "Blooming" at Northeastern 260

The 1960s at Boston University 268

Institutional Mobility and Organizational Form 274

The Irony of the Urban University 286

The Good Times End 289

6. From State College to University System: The University of Massachusetts, 1945-1973 298

The Early Postwar Years 298

UMass in the 1950s 306

UMass in the 1960s 315

Academic Organization and Political Systems 333

From Rapid Growth to Steady State 346

Part 3 Patterns

7. The Institutional Complex and Academic Adaptation, 1945-1980 355

The Institutional Complex in Action: 1945-1970 355

Adaptations of the 1970s 379

The Institutional Complex and the Reform Agenda 401.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references (pages 484-511) and index.

ISBN:

0195054644

OCLC:

23648896