College of Humanities and Social Science Records

College of Humanities and Social Sciences Records, 1913-(1960-1989)-1999
Official University Records, Carnegie Mellon University Archives

Extent
19 cu. ft. [19 Boxes]

Records History
During the first years of the Carnegie Institute of Technology (CIT), each of the colleges that comprised CIT employed their own teachers of academic humanities subjects -- Economics, English, History, Mathematics, Modern Languages, and Psychology. In 1917, a planned restructuring brought teachers of like subjects together into a Central Faculty. World War I prevented implementation of the restructuring until 1919, at which time the Central Faculty was renamed the Division of Academic Studies. Shortly thereafter, the administration approved a name change to the Division of General Studies.

Most viewed the Division as a "service" unit, providing academic humanities courses for male students pursuing degrees in the "technical" Divisions of Science and Engineering Arts, Industries, or Applied Psychology. The final Division, Margaret Morrison Carnegie College, provided liberal arts courses for women.

In 1941, the Division of General Studies was reorganized into the Division of Humanistic and Social Studies. Reorganization provided an opportunity for the new Division to overcome the "service" niche in which General Studies had existed. By 1950, the new Division had become a vital part of Carnegie Tech. Students from other Divisions were increasingly taking more humanities courses. This was especially true of the female students at Margaret Morrison. In the 1950s, there was a concerted effort to integrate Margaret Morrison and Engineering & Science students into H&SS courses. In 1962, the administration approved another name change. The Division of Humanistic and Social Studies became the Division of Humanities and Social Sciences.

In 1967, discussion of a "new college for Carnegie Tech" began. Efforts were made to bring the humanities departments together into a cohesive unit and the first class of the "New College" entered in September 1969. However, problems plagued the program from the start and it did not long survive.

During the mid-1970s, the administration took steps to reorganize the collection of departments they had recently acknowledged as the College of Humanities and Social Sciences. The various departments, in truth, had become disjointed, haphazard, and were lacking a common goal. The reorganization of the mid-1970s also included women who would have attended Margaret Morrison, for the college had graduated its last class in the spring of 1969.

The late 1970s and early 1980s saw the development of a core curriculum and the adoption of the phrase "liberal professional education" as an integral part of the mission of the College. The core curriculum and defined mission aided departments in establishing a base on which the College could grow. Statistics formally joined the College in 1981. Philosophy separated from History, becoming its own department, in 1985. The Education Center, which had operated within the college for approximately 15 years, was given a university-wide mission and renamed the University Teaching Center. The academic departments within the College underwent reviews by outside visiting committees during the late 1980s and early 1990s. These efforts were made as an effort to upgrade the image of the College.

Records Scope Notes
This collection contains records of the College of Humanities and Social Sciences which are arranged in five topical series, totaling 19 cubic feet. The collection spans the period from 1913 through 1999. Except for annual reports, the records are rather lacking from the early years through the 1940s. There are increasingly more records from the 1950s. The bulk of the records span the 1960s through the 1980s. There are a limited number of records from the 1990s.

The Administrative records include information covering a broad range of the duties of the operation of a liberal arts college. Additionally, this series contains records of several of the centers that the college was associated with throughout its history.

The Faculty records include information pertaining to the business of the faculty amongst itself, including matters such as tenure policies, faculty meeting minutes, and evaluation procedures.

The Student records include general information relating to students and student activities within the college, as well as specifics on the types/numbers of students who applied to the College and attended the College.

The Academic series contains specific department records and provide information on the workings of the departments. Some of the sub-series are quite detailed, while others are not. A significant portion of the documents in each sub-series is correspondence between members of the department faculty with members of the administration, or individuals outside the college and the university.

The Publications series contains promotional literature about the college and the various programs/activities associated with it. Additionally, it contains books written by College faculty and members of the College community.

Provenance
This collection was transferred from the Dean's office of the College of Humanities and Social Sciences to the University Archives in stages. The material included in this inventory had reached the Archives by January 2000.

Restrictions
Information pertaining to personnel procedures, information covered by FERPA, and any salary information will be restricted accordingly.

---

Container List: College of Humanities and Social Sciences Records

I. Administrative Records

II. Faculty Records