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Board of Trustees, Records
, 1901-2005
; Bulk Dates 1962- 1975
Carnegie Mellon University Archives, Official University Records
Eight boxes (Boxes 1-8); 7.5 linear feet
For over 50 years, the Trustees of the Carnegie Institute of Technology (CIT) existed only as a subcommittee of the Carnegie Institute Board of Trustees, the The Carnegie Institute being comprised of the Carnegie Library, Museums, and Institute of Technology. The Institute of Technology was the last of these three institutions to be founded and its operation was to be controlled by the same Board as the first two institutions. On September 29, 1903, the Board of Trustees of the Carnegie Institute appointed a committee to oversee the development of the school. The committee was called the Committee on the Carnegie Technical Schools of Pittsburgh and consisted of Messrs. Frew, Brashear, McConway, Scaife, Stevenson, Booth, and later Mr. Hamerschlag.
After classes began at the school in 1905, oversight continued to be in the hands of the Carnegie Institute and its Board of Trustees. A subcommittee of nine men had direct responsibility for the operations of the school.
In 1939 the By-laws for the Carnegie Institute of Technology were revised to give CIT more control of its own finances. Positions were added to the subcommittee that were not a part of the larger Board of Trustees. The name of the subcommittee became the “Executive Committee of the Board of Trustees on the Carnegie Institute of Technology.” In addition, the President of the school finally had a seat on Carnegie Institute Board of Trustees.
After World War II, Carnegie Tech’s reputation grew geographically. In 1948, Walter Blenko became the first alumnus to be Chairman of the Board of Trustees subcommittee for the school. Blenko and many others felt that the school’s Board of Trustees should reflect the school’s national recognition and receive guidance from a more diverse set of Trustees.
In 1959 the Court of Common Pleas granted the Carnegie Institute of Technology a completely separate Board of Trustees. The new By-laws stated that “the business, property, and affairs of the Corporation [Carnegie Institute of Technology] shall be managed and controlled by its Board of Trustees.”
There are several types of terms that a trustee may serve- Life, Alumni, Special, Ex-officio, and Emeritus Life. In addition, Trustees serve on committees specific to administrative or academic areas. In the words of the 1967 handbook, “Trustees are an influential group that guides the direction, scope, spirit, and quality of the institution.”
The Records of the Board of Trustees are housed in eight boxes and arranged into five series. Series have been designated for handbooks, Executive Committee minutes, other committees, Visiting Committees, and miscellaneous. The activities of the Board of Trustees are documented through the work of its committees, and therefore the majority of this collection consists of meeting minutes, reports, and correspondence. Although the Board of Trustees began in 1903, the majority of the documentation in this collection begins around 1962. The Miscellaneous series contains information about some of the Board members, as do the Handbooks in Series One.
The handbooks are housed in two half-foot boxes and arranged chronologically by academic year. The handbooks contain information about Board members, committees, and By-laws.
The Executive Committee meeting minutes are housed in one box and arranged chronologically by academic year. During these meetings, Trustees might approve appointments of faculty, establish policies, acknowledge gifts, and set finances for the University.
The other committees series is housed across two boxes and is arranged alphabetically by committee name. The majority of the materials in this series are meeting minutes, but correspondence and reports may also be present. These committees generally oversee administrative tasks or broad responsibilities of the school such as finance, research, or educational affairs. Each committee reports to the Executive Committee regularly.
The Visiting Committees series is housed across four boxes and arranged alphabetically by committee title. This series includes reports, meeting minutes, correspondence, and press releases. These committees are assigned to specific academic or research programs within the University, such as Chemistry, Music, or Physics. Each committee reports to the Executive Committee regularly.
The miscellaneous series is housed across two boxes and is arranged alphabetically. Most of the materials are correspondence sent to the Trustees such as meeting agendas, reports, articles, and financial information. Correspondence from several prominent Board Members is also part of this series. In particular, there is information about Dr. John A. Brashear who was member of the Board from 1903 until his death in 1920. Materials about Dr. Brashear include programs from his 75th birthday Masque and Processional, biographical articles, and correspondence about his portrait that was to be donated to the University after the death of his wife. Other Board members’ correspondence includes Walter Blenko, James Bovard, Aiken Fisher, Roy Hunt, Jr., and John Laboon.
The provenance of this collection is unknown at this time (7/30/07).
None.
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Cassandra Nespor
| Contact Us | Site Map | CommentsJuly 27, 2007 -- http://www.library.cmu.edu/Research/Archives/UnivArchives/Trustees.html
Jennie Benford,University/Heinz Archivist, jbenford@andrew.cmu.edu © 2007 Carnegie Mellon Libraries |