Series I. 1945 Presidential Search, 1945-1947
This series, for the most part, contains the records of the Special Faculty Committee on the Presidency. It includes the correspondence received by the committee from members both inside and outside of Columbia nominating candidates for the presidency. There are three versions of the reports collecting the names of the nominees, their qualifications and statements of support, including the final version presented to the Board of Trustees in September 1945. The rest of the series contains the Trustees correspondence in conducting the search over the next two years. There are also newspaper clippings and articles related to search and the appointment of President Dwight D. Eisenhower in 1947.
Box 1
Special Faculty Committee on the Presidency correspondence, 1945-1946
Names Suggested for Consideration for the Presidency, 1st edition, A-L,, 1945
Names Suggested for Consideration for the Presidency, 1st edition, M-Z,, 1945
Names Suggested for Consideration for the Presidency, A-I, 1945 August, 1945
Names Suggested for Consideration for the Presidency, J-W, 1945 August, 1945
Candidates submitted by the Executive Committee to the Trustees, 1945 September, 1945
Candidate report materials, 1945
Candidate report annotated drafts, 1945
Trustees' Special Committee on the Presidency correspondence, 1945
Trustees' Special Committee on the Presidency correspondence, 1946
Trustees' Special Committee on the Presidency correspondence, 1947
News clippings related to the search and Eisenhower's appointment,, 1945-1948
President Grayson Kirk's transfer of the 1945 presidential search files to the Columbiana Collection, 1967, 1945, 1967
Series II. 1968 Presidential Search, 1968-1974
This series contains the records of the Faculty Search Committee for a Permanent President of the University convened in 1968. There are meeting minutes, notes, candidate files and general subject files, including the records of the Student Search Committee. The records end in May 1969, as the committees considered candidates but the search remains unsolved. The records include correspondence about the search process in 1969 that was shared with President McGill in 1974.
Box 2
Faculty Search Committee for a Permanent President of the University Minutes,, 1968-1969
1968 November 5, 1968
1968 November 25, 1968
1968 November 27, 1968
1968 December 4, 1968
1968 December 18, 1968
1969 January 8, 1969
1969 January 15, 1969
1969 January 29, 1969
1969 February 5, 1969
1969 February 12, 1969
1969 February 14, 1969
1969 February 18, 1969
1969 February 26, 1969
1969 March 14, 1969
1969 March 26, 1969
1969 April 11, 1969
1969 April 16, 1969
1969 April 23, 1969
1969 April 30, 1969
1969 May 1, 1969
1969 May 7, 1969
General Files, 1968-1969
Acknowledgements
Consultative Committee
Expense record
Members, Search Committee
Miscellaneous
Procedures, Search Committee
Press
Selection criteria
Student Search Committee
Courtney Brown to President William J. McGill, 1969-1974
Box 3
Candidates, General List, 1968-1969
General dossiers, 1968-1969
Candidate files, A-Z, 1968-1969
Series III. 1979 Presidential Search, 1979-1980
This series is made up of the "chron" files and correspondence of the Presidential Search Committee in 1979. There are also articles, books, pamphlets and copies of the position advertisement.
Box 4
Presidential Search Committee chronological file 1, 1979 January 30 to 1979 August 30, 1979, 1979
Presidential Search Committee chronological file 2, 1979 September 6 to 1979 September 18, 1979, 1979
Presidential Search Committee chronological file 3, 1979 September 19 to 1979 October 17, 1979, 1979
Presidential Search Committee chronological file 4, 1979 October 18 to 1980 February26, 1979, 1980
Presidential Search Committee general correspondence file, 1979 March4 to 1980 January 14, 1979, 1980
Presidential Search Committee minutes, 1979 July to 1980 January, 1979, 1980
Financial Times of Canada, 1979
Institutional mailing and responses, 1979
Log of nominations, 1979
All Columbia Community mailing and responses, 1979
Newspaper articles, 1979-1980
Paul Stratford Associates, Ltd., 1979
Preliminary Statement, 1979
Schedules/Senate Caucuses, 1979
Columbia Community mailing logistics, 1979
Position advertisements, 1979
Books and pamphlets, 1979
Series IV. 1992 Presidential Search, 1992-1993
This series contains three subseries of records that were maintained in the Presidential Search Committee office. Most of the documents of the Presidential Search Committee records fall within the period June 6, 1992 through February 1, 1993, the dates of the announcement of President Sovern's resignation and the announcement of the selection of George Rupp as Columbia's next President, respectively.
Subseries IV.1: Nominee Files, 1992-1993
The nominee files contain nomination letters, curriculum vitae or resume, Who's Who entry and/or a biographical sketch created by the Committee, relevant press clippings and articles, and some evaluation of the candidate's qualifications. At the beginning of the search process, these nominee files were used extensively by Committee members for comparisons and to determine what other information was still needed. After the selection of the Faculty Consulting Committee, selected portions of the files deemed non-confidential for their purposes were made available to them. The files of those candidates being most seriously considered by the Committee were most heavily used and tended to contain the most information. To ensure confidentiality, materials provided at the Search Committee meetings were retrieved by the Secretary at the end of each meeting for return to the Committee office. As the search process narrowed and intensified, most Committee members relied on the information provided at meetings (abstracted for them from the nominee files) rather than on a review of the actual nominee files themselves.
Subseries IV.2: Administrative Files, 1992-1993
These files contain copies of the acknowledgment letters sent by Committee members to individuals who nominated candidates or provided advice concerning the qualities the President should have, usually in response to the community mailing. The chronological files contain all other outgoing and inter-office correspondence and related materials from the Search Committee. There are also materials related to the planning for the mailing of 180,000 letters announcing President Sovern's resignation and soliciting nominations for his successor. There is information about the formation of the Faculty Consulting Committee to assist the Search Committee and biographical information of its nine members. There are also notes, articles and memoranda concerning searches conducted by other universities, status reports, mailing lists, and materials related to other universities' presidential searches.
Acknowledgement Letters
Box 21
1992 October 12-1993 March12, 1992
1992 September 23-October 8, 1992
1992 September 14-22, 1992
1992 September 8-11, 1992
1992 August 20-September 4, 1992
1992 August 19, 1992
1992 August 14-18, 1992
1992 June 16-August 13, 1992
Chron Files
Box 22
1992 December 1-1993 March12, 1992
1992 October 2-November 24, 1992
1992 July 7-September 30, 1992
1992 June 6-July 16, 1992
Community Mailing-General
Correspondence, Incoming
1992 August 13-1993 March 5, 1992
1992 June 8-August 11, 1992
Correspondence re: Community Mailing, 1992 July 29-November 22, 1992
Box 23
Faculty Consulting Committee
Harvard Presidential Search
Mailing Lists
College Administrators
College Presidents
College Provosts and Deans
Columbia Emeriti Faculty
Columbia Trustees (Current, Former, Emeriti)
Government Relations
Major Donors
Nominee Chart, Cumulative
Nominee Charts, Prepared for Committee Meetings
Box 24
Notes from Meetings
Planning Materials for Search
Search Committee Meeting with Columbia Community
Search Firm Correspondence
Stanford Presidential Search
University Statutes and By-Laws Relevant to Presidential Search
Written Advice
1992 September 1-1993 January 19, 1992
1992 August 1-31, 1992
1992 April 24-July 31, 1992
Subseries IV.3: Sample of Materials Sent To Interviewees, 1992
Materials sent to candidates who were to be interviewed by search committees. These were meant to provide the candidates with in-depth information about Columbia's history, facilities and programs, financial data and relevant current issues.
Series V. 2001 Presidential Search, 2001-2002
This series contains three subseries of records that were maintained in the Presidential Search Committee office.
Subseries V.1: Nominee Files, 2001-2002
427 nominees were suggested for consideration. The nominee file folders contain a nomination letter, a Who's Who entry and Press clippings, newspaper or magazine articles. These nominee files were used by Committee members for evaluation of a candidate's qualifications, for comparison with other candidates, and to determine what other information was still needed. Files of nine nominees were made available to the Faculty Advisory Group.
Subseries V.2: Administrative Files, 2001-2002
These files contain the correspondence and related materials from the Search Committee. Among records included in these files are press releases, memoranda and enclosures, internal memoranda, press clippings, and items relating to the selection of the next president. There are also materials pertaining to the planning for the mailing of 200,000 letters announcing President Rupp's resignation and soliciting nominations and advice for his successor. There are lists of candidates, handwritten notes, Search Committee member biographies and contact information, and excerpts of important University documents relevant to the presidential search process.
Box 29
Communication Files
Correspondence
Committee Communications
Faculty Advisory Group
Harvard Presidential Search
Other Presidential Searches
Nominee Charts
Presidential Committee Notes
Notes from Constituencies
Search Committee Contact
Search Committee Meetings with Columbia Community
University Statutes and By-Laws Relevant to Presidential Search
Subseries V.3: Sample of Materials Sent to Interviewees, 2001
These materials were sent to candidates who were to be interviewed by the Search Committee and other potential candidates determined by the Search Committee. The materials provided the candidates and nominees in-depth information about Columbia's history, facilities and programs, financial data and relevant current issues.
Informational materials about Columbia