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Papers and administrative materials documenting the work of the Office of the Dean.  Some materials may be confidential and not available for research.

There has been a person serving in the capacity of Dean of the Faculty/College since 1944. The exact titles changed over the years and the duties varied, but essentially these persons served similar functions.

In the 1958 North Central Association report to the College, the Dean of the College was responsible for being the academic assistant to the President and the person to assume leadership in the absence of the President.

In 1968 the Dean was described as the person who cooperates with the President in the administration of the academic affairs of the College; who advises the President on academic and other matters; and who represents the President in his/her absence unless an Acting President had been appointed by the Trustees. The Dean also served as Chair of the Faculty Committee on Academic Standing, Chair of the Faculty committee on Admissions and Student Aid, and as a member of the Faculty Executive Council. (From the 1968 NCA report).

When the College was seeking a new Dean of the Faculty in 1980, the principal responsibilities of the Dean were to provide leadership in working with the President and the Faculty in areas of curriculum, faculty development, and maintenance of the quality of the academic profram. (From job description located in RG-F Series 3).

Following is a list of persons in this position with their exact titles, dates, and in parentheses, the name(s) of the president(s) under whom they served.

Earl D. Strong, Dean, 1944-1951 (Stevens)

Max Fuller, Dean of the College, 1951-1954 (Stevens)

R. Homer Norton, Acting Dean of the College, 1954-1956; Dean of the College, 1956-1960 (Hawk, Bowen)

James H. Stauss, Dean of the College, 1960-1966; Provost and Dean of the College, 1966-1969 (Bowen, Leggett)

Joseph F. Wall, Dean of the college, 1969-1973 (Leggett)

Waldo S. Walker, Executive Vice President and Dean of the College, 1973-1977; Provost and Dean of the College, 1977-1980 (Leggett, Turner)

Catherine Frazer, Dean of the Faculty, 1980-1987 (Turner, Drake)

Charles L. Duke, Dean of the Faculty, 1987-1988; Vice President for Academic Affairs and Dean of the Faculty, 1988-1992; Vice President for Academic Affairs and Dean of the College, 1992-1997 (Drake, Ferguson)

James Swartz, Vice President for Academic Affairs and Dean of the College, 1998-2008 (Ferguson, Osgood)

Paula V. Smith, Vice President for Academic Affairs and Dean of the College, 2008-2013 (Osgood, Kington)

David Lopatto, Interim Dean of the College, 2013-2014 (Kington)

Michael E. Latham, Vice President for Academic Affairs and Dean of the College, 2014-2019 (Kington)

Anne F. Harris, Vice President for Academic Affairs and Dean of the College, 2019-2020 (Kington)

Elaine M. Marzluff, Interim Dean of the College, 2020- (Harris)

CBS = Concerned Black Students

Anne Abler and Richard Case Woodworth.

The Edith Renfrow Smith Black Women's Library was established in 2019 by student Rayyon Robinson, class of 2019. It is housed in the Conney M. Kimbo Black Cultural Center.

Office Files contains applications to ACTION, progress reports, correspondence, and budgets. In addition are program evaluations, the CSC newsletter (Bridges), and public relations' materials. Program Files contains files on each program or agency with which student volunteers worked. There are lists of volunteers, correspondence, clippings and public relations materials, and information about the program or agency. The CSC received a great deal of recognition for student involvement with Alternative Breaks in which students worked on service activities instead of taking vacations. Some statistical information regarding student volunteerism can be found in the "Class projects" file.

The Summer Programs Office was organized in 1982 by James C. Work. The office coordinated special academic and athletic summer programs and outside groups using campus facilities for conferences. In 1989-1990 the name of the office was changed to Special Services and Summer Activities as additional responsibilities were added. During the college's sesquicentannial celebration, the office coordinated many on-campus and off-campus events. In July, 2001, the office merged with the Office of Public Relations to become the Office of Communications and Events.

Consists of transcripts and biographical material for Grinnell students. All information is considered confidential under provisions of 20 U.S.C Section 1232(g) (1982), The Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FIRPA) of 1974, as ammended.

Items in the Treasurer's Office record group span the years 1847-1980.  Records from the 19th Century (Series 1 and 4) consist chiefly of ledgers, journals, and donor lists.

Prior to 1887 the college had no office force, and a Trustee served as Treasurer (without salary). Several local bankers serves as treasurers and auditors during the Gates' administration, The first salaried Treasurer was H. H. Robbins.

H. H. Robbins, 1869, was Secretary and Treasurer of Iowa College 1887-1906, and was a Trustee 1890-1906. Prior to 1887 he was a Congregational minister and a railroad engineer. He was the son of Iowa Band Member A. B. Robbins, who was the first president of the Board.

H. W. Somers, 1882, became Business Manager and Secretary in 1907. His duties were to direct the financial and accounting system of the college and to direct fund raising. In 1916 his title changed to Secretary and Treasurer, and Louis Pyelps became Business Manager. Somers served until 1919.
Louis Phelps came as Business Manager in 1916, was college Treasurer 1919-1949. He was Secretary of the Grinnell College Foundation 1917-ca. 1954. Prior to coming to Grinnell he was a construction engineer, and was involved in construction of the women’s quadrangle 1914-1916.

Rupert Hawk, Treasurer, 1949-1956
Charles Kaufman served as Accountant 1942-1956 and as Treasurer 1956-1966
Donald Lambie, Treasurer, 1966-1972
Robert Anderson, Treasurer, 1972-1988
Waldo Walker, Treasurer, 1988-1990
David Clay, Treasurer, 1990-

From about 1913 to 1940 the college expanded its facilities dramatically.  Louis Phelps, College Treasurer 1919-1949, and Grinnell College Foundation Secretary 1917-ca.1954, preserved most of the papers which expedited the financing and construction of the dormitories and a few other buildings during this period.  Series 3-5 are from his files.

Providing on-campus dormitores for students was a new phenomenon in the early part of the twentieth century, and financing their construction called for considerable ingenuity.  Grinnell was a pioneer in this, and other colleges and universities studied the example.  One officer of the General Education Board, a Rockefeller philanthropy which contributed significantly to the College, praised President Main for pioneering in the social and educational experiment; another officer feared that war or pestilence might create serious problems in dormitories (RG-T, Ser. 3.4, folder 2, Phelps to Arnett, 6/22/30),.  The College Trustees created Grinnell College Foundation to raise the funds.  Details of their activities are in Series 6 and Series 3.4 of this record group.  Dormitory construction records are in Series 4.

Part of the financing involved owning, managing, and selling farms and other real estate.  Correspondence between Mr. Phelps and the farmers and farm managers (in series 5) records on a day-to-day basis the myriad problems farmers faced during the 1920s and 30s in the midwest.  Text books describe the agricultural situation, but this correspondence brings home what it was like to live and cope with falling market prices, crop diseases, pernicious weather patterns, and personal tragedies.  The correspondence includes such details as building and equipment repairs; livestock sales; plant and animal diseases; when to castrate the pigs; planting windbreaks; inability to get crops to market because of muddy roads; government farm assistance programs; trial planiting of the new hybrid corn seed.  Phelps was involved in all of these details.

Edith Renfrow Smith (1914- ), class of 1937, is the first Black female graduate of Grinnell College.

Materials include articles about Mrs. Smith and her connection to the college and town of Grinnell, a photo book from the dedication of the Smith Gallery, The Grinnell Magazine Summer 2007 with Mrs. Renfrow Smith on the cover, and the Congressional Record Tribute from 2002 (oversized).

The collection includes nine photographic prints used at the exhibit "The True Grinnellian: An exhibition to honor Edith Renfrow Smith '37" that accompanied the re-dedication of the Edith Renfrow Smith '37 Student Art Gallery on October 28, 2021. Filed in Oversize #1

Focused on Umoja 2006 event, hosted at Grinnell College, with invitations, the initial proposal, list of speakers and their biographies. Contains second place plaque.

Study by Stuart Yeager conducted under the direction of Professor David Jordan.

Includes interviews with the following alumni: Anderson, Jocelyn Williams, class of 1961 Beyene, Elizabeth Turner, class of 1957 Boone, Lillian Nell, class of 1951 (Hampton Exchange student) Cadwell, Mary H., class of 1952 (Hampton Exchange student) Cannon, Claramarie Colbert, class of 1959 Chavis, Gregory, class of 1978 Farbes, Hubert, class of 1969 Frank, William, class of 1950 (Hampton Exchange student) French, Rebecca, class of 1930 (active in interracial affairs) Gary, Leiana Thomas, class of 1973 Gray, Jon, class of 1973 Green, Deborah, class of 1970 Kaiser, Elayne, Chapman, class of 1954 Kitchen, Gordon, class of 1925 Kpordze, C. S. Kojo, class of 1970 Lamb, Clifton, class of 1931 Lowry, James, class of 1961 Morgan Randall C., Jr., class of 1965 Oskamp, Stuart, class of 1951 (Hampton Exchange student) Piediscalzi, Nicholas, class of 1952 (Hampton Exchange student) Simmons, James, class of 1961 Smith, Edith Renfrow, class of 1937 Smith, Karen P. class of 1969 Steens, Harri Etta, class of 1976 Stewart, Donald, class of 1959 Swansey, Patricia, class of 1974 Taylor, Casey, class of 1973 Taylor, Leslie, class of 1981 Thomas, Frank, class of 1971 Tuck, Constance, class of 1975 Wilson, Marie Brito class of 1949 (Hampton Exchange student) Baker, Lowell, III, class of 1963 Carter, Gwendolyn, class of 1974 Cisco, Narda, class of 1970 Scott, Sybille Y., class of 1975 Smith, Edith Renfrow, class of 1937, (two interviews) Blacks connected with Grinnell: Flagg, Annozean, daughter of Whitefield McKinlay, class of 1882 Renfrow, Alice, sister of Edith Renfrow Smith, class of 1937

Correspondence, photocopies of relevant items in the college archives, clippings, articles, biographical notes.