Kerr (Clark) Personal and Professional Papers, 1800-2005,, bulk bulk 1952-2003

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Summary

Title:
Clark Kerr personal and professional papers
Dates:
1800-2005,, bulk bulk 1952-2003
Creators:
Kerr, Clark, 1911-2003
Abstract:
Clark Kerr Personal and Professional Papers documents Kerr's life as an educator, labor negotiator, and, most importantly, as chancellor of UC Berkeley and then president of the University of California system. The collection spans his professional career from the beginning of his work in labor relations to his last great work, his memoir, The Gold and the Blue: A Personal Memoir of the University of California, 1949-1967. The collection contains personal, professional, and family papers (including correspondence and papers of his parents and grandparents) of Clark Kerr, including University of California administrative records, writings, speeches, correspondence, awards, committee papers, and photographs.
Extent:
Number of containers: 70 Cartons, 6 boxes Linear feet: 90.13
Language:
Collection materials are in English.
Preferred citation:

[Identification of item], Clark Kerr Personal and Professional Papers, CU-302, The Bancroft Library, University of California, Berkeley.

Background

Scope and content:

Clark Kerr Personal and Professional Papers documents Kerr's life as an educator, labor negotiator, and, most importantly, as chancellor of UC Berkeley and then president of the University of California system. The collection spans his professional career from the beginning of his work in labor relations to his last great work, his memoir, The Gold and the Blue: A Personal Memoir of the University of California, 1949-1967. The collection contains personal, professional, and family papers (including correspondence and papers of his parents and grandparents) of Clark Kerr, including University of California administrative records, writings, speeches, correspondence, awards, committee papers, and photographs.

Of especial interest for students of the sixties, might be Series 1, Administrative Files and Series 5, The Gold and the Blue. The Administrative Files reflect the most pressing concerns of Kerr's chancellorship and presidency. They include original memoranda and other official records that Kerr required to handle those issues. Included in Series 5 are background materials collected for writing his memoirs as well as candid comments by his peers on his manuscript as he wrote it. In some cases there is voluminous correspondence reflecting disagreements over the course of events described in controversial chapters.

Series 2 and 3, Professional Papers as Chancellor and as President reflect Kerr's more unofficial life during those periods. They include materials that reflect his on-going interest in labor relations and teaching and his involvement in professional organizations and committees and for the federal government. After he was fired in 1967, Kerr returned to teaching and took up positions with the Carnegie Commission. He was very active in higher education in more general ways, conducting research and chairing various national committees to study issues in higher education.

The collection is arranged into seven series: Administrative Files, 1940-1987; Professional Papers as Chancellor, 1940-1958; Professional Papers as President, 1958-1973; Personal Files Post-President, 1967-2003; The Gold and the Blue, 1942-2004; Honors and Awards, 1945-2003; and Personal and Family Papers, 1900s-2004

Biographical / historical:

Clark Kerr was born in Reading, Pennsylvania on May 17, 1911 to Samuel W. and Caroline (Clark) Kerr. He married Catherine (Kitty) Spaulding in Los Angeles, California in 1934, and they had three children: Clark Edgar, Alexander William, and Caroline Mary. Kerr died in 2003, shortly after completing his memoirs, The Gold and the Blue: A Personal Memoir of the University of California, 1949-1967.

Kerr received his Bachelor of Arts degree in 1932 from Swarthmore College, his Master of Arts degree in 1933 from Stanford University, and his PhD in economics in 1939 from the University of California at Berkeley (Berkeley). His first teaching position was at Antioch College from 1937 to 1938, and he went on to teach at International College in Elsinore, Denmark; Stanford University; the University of Washington; and Berkeley. From 1945 to 1952, he was the Director of the Institute of Industrial Relations at Berkeley. He became the first Chancellor at Berkeley in 1952, a post he held until 1958, when he became President of the University of California system. While president he lead the expansion of the University system by three new campuses and wrestled with growing student unrest and the Free Speech Movement. In 1967, under pressure from Governor Ronald Reagan, the Board of Regents fired him, he and resumed his teaching and research. He led the influential Carnegie Commission on Higher Education until 1973 and its successor the Carnegie Council on Policy Issues in Higher Education until 1979.*

*Most of the information in this biographical summary came from the Center for Studies in Higher Education web site: http://cshe.berkeley.edu/events/kerrlectures/

Acquisition information:
The Clark Kerr Personal and Professional Papers were transferred to the University Archives from Clark Kerr, The Center for Studies in Higher Education, and Marion Gade.
Processing information:

Processed by Susan Storch and Tammy Lo in 2007

Arrangement:

Arranged to the folder level.

Accruals:

No additions are expected.

Physical location:
Many of the Bancroft Library collections are stored offsite and advance notice may be required for use. For current information on the location of these materials, please consult the Library's online catalog.
Rules or conventions:
Finding aid prepared using Describing Archives: a Content Standard

About this collection guide

Collection Guide Author:
Finding Aid written by Susan Storch
Sponsor:
Funding for processing this collection was provided by Office of the President
Date Prepared:
© 2007
Date Encoded:
Machine-readable finding aid generated by Finding Aid author(s) via EAD XPress; markup validated by The Bancroft Library staff using OAC validation tools; Date of source: August 2007

Access and use

Restrictions:

Collection is open for research with a few exceptions. Boxes 5 and 6 are closed for 75 years past the date of creation in compliance with Federal and State Privacy Law and FERPA. Subseries 4.6-Governance Interviews-is restricted as described in the subseries scope and content note.

Terms of access:

All requests to reproduce, publish, quote from or otherwise use collection materials must be submitted in writing to the Head of Public Services, The Bancroft Library, University of California, Berkeley, 94720-6000. Consent is given on behalf of The Bancroft Library as the owner of the physical items and is not intended to include or imply permission from the copyright owner. Such permission must be obtained from the copyright owner. See: http://bancroft.berkeley.edu/reference/permissions.html.

Restrictions also apply to digital representations of the original materials. Use of digital files is restricted to research and educational purposes.

Preferred citation:

[Identification of item], Clark Kerr Personal and Professional Papers, CU-302, The Bancroft Library, University of California, Berkeley.

Location of this collection:
University of California, Berkeley, University Archives, The Bancroft Library
Berkeley, CA 94720-6000, US
Contact:
(510) 642-6481
bancref-library@berkeley.edu
Website