Research

• Full Finding Aid
• Overview
• Arrangement
• Administrative History
• Scope and Contents
• Related Material
• Access Restrictions
• Processing Information
• Access Terms
• Detailed Description

Print PDF  

New York State Education Department Commissioner George D. Stoddard Subject Files

Some content may contain outdated and offensive terminology. See: New York State Archives Statement on Language in Descriptive Resources

Overview of the Records

Arrangement

Organized into two groups of records by two-year increments (1942-1944 and 1944-1946), then alphabetical by subject.

Administrative History

George Stoddard was born in 1897 in Carbondale, Pennsylvania. He received his Bachelor's of Arts degree at Pennsylvania State College in 1921, earned a diplome from the University of Paris in 1923, and was awarded a Ph.D. from the University of Iowa in 1925. After receiving his doctorate, he joined the faculty of the Psychology department at the University of Iowa, attaining the rank of Full Professor in 1929. While at Iowa, he served as the Dean of the Graduate College, 1936-1942; director of the Iowa Child Welfare Research Station, 1928-1942; and Head of the Department of Psychology, 1938-1939. In addition, he wrote around 150 articles and seven books on topics related to child development, including tests and measurements, child psychology, child education, parent education, and higher education. On July 1, 1942, Stoddard took office as President of the University of the State of New York and Commissioner of Education.

Stoddard's tenure as Commissioner of Education was dominated by World War II, and the activities of the New York State Education Department to aid in the state's war effort. Among his accomplishments were securing funding for the establishment of a chain of junior colleges in New York State, as well as working with State War Council to provide job training for 750,000 people working in war-related factories. After World War II, Stoddard aided in the planning for expected enrollment increases in New York State colleges and universities, due to the return of GI's from the war front.

Stoddard resigned as Commissioner of Education on June 30th, 1946, in order to become president of the University of Illinois. After seven years at Illinois, he moved to New York University, where he held successive positions as the director of NYU's self-study program, dean of education, and, from 1960-1964, Chancellor and Executive Vice President of the University. Stoddard retired from education in 1969 as Chancellor of Long Island University. He passed away on December 28, 1981 in New York.

Scope and Content Note

Correspondence, publications, reports, meeting minutes, and other materials related to the operation of the New York State Education Department under Commissioner of Education George Stoddard.

Much of the State Education Department's efforts during Stoddard's tenure were focused on specific challenges facing education during World War II. Included among the records are correspondence, meeting minutes, and position papers from the American Council on Education, which was formed during World War I as attempt to coordinate interests of American education at all levels, particularly higher education, in their relations with the Federal government. This council served a similar purpose during World War II. Also included is correspondence about New York State Social Welfare Department programs funded by the Federal Works Agency for child care programs in New York State schools targeted toward children with parents in the military, as well as correspondence, minutes, and reports regarding new physical education guidelines and programs on physical fitness sponsored by the State War Council.

The State Education Department was also involved in numerous projects related to planning for the post-World War II period. Included among the records are correspondence and reports on planning for construction projects in the State Education Department and at state higher education institutions, planned for construction after World War II. Also included are correspondence, drafts, and final copies of the Regents Plan for Post-War Education in the State of New York, involving vocational and higher education for returning soldiers, increased funding for teachers colleges, and extension programs for library and archives services. Furthermore, correspondence and reports are included from the U.S. Committee on Educational Reconstruction, a group founded to aid the rehabilitation of educational institutions in post-war Europe.

Partially in response to the demand created by returning soldiers and an increased focus on military preparedness, the State Education Department under George Stoddard increased its focus on vocational and technical education. The collection includes correspondence, reports, proposed curricula, and other materials related to the proposed Institutes of Applied Arts and Sciences, involving post-secondary agricultural and technical education programs at New York State higher education institutions. In addition, correspondence and reports are included from the Joint Committee on the Study of Rural Education Services, charged with developing a plan for studying agricultural education in NYS.

Also in the collection are materials focused on secondary education in New York State, including correspondence and reports from special committees on secondary education, such as Commissioner Stoddard's Committee on Secondary School Problems, the Commissioner's Advisory Committee on Secondary Education, and the Special Committee on Constants in the Curriculum, as well as papers on general trends in secondary education. Numerous files are also present which deal with specific higher education institutions in New York State, including correspondence and reports on the establishment of the New York State School of Industrial and Labor Relations at Cornell University, as well as material related to various New York State teacher's colleges.

The State Education Department's relationships with the U.S. and New York State governments are also well-documented. Included are correspondence and bills related to proposed federal legislation related to education, including general school aid, school lunch bill, vocational rehabilitation for disabled war veterans. Also included are correspondence, articles, and reports from, and related to, the Governor's Committee on the State Educational Program, mostly focused on the revision of the "Friedsman formula" for state aid to the public schools.

Related Material

George Dinsmore Stoddard Miscellaneous Papers, 1945-1980, at the Hoover Institution Archives, Stanford, California. George D. Stoddard Papers, 1915-2001, at the University of Illinois Archives, Urbana, Illinois. George D. Stoddard "Krebiozen" Papers, at the University of Illinois at Chicago Special Collections and University Archives.

Processing Information

W0101-78: These records were transferred by the State Library in 1978 and originally accessioned as part of Series 15080. When Series 15080 was separated into individual series corresponding to each commissioner in 2017, the records were re-designated part of Series W0101.

This series description was enhanced as part of the States' Impact on Federal Education Policy Project (SIFEPP), in July 2008. The New York Community Trust - Wallace Special Projects Fund provided funding for this project.

Access Restrictions

Commissioners in Schools Files: Restricted to protect personal privacy. Access may be permitted under certain conditions upon application to and approval by the State Archives.

Access Terms

Detailed Description