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Institute on World Affairs Records
MS-0348
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Table of contents
Contributing Institution:
Special Collections & University Archives
Title: Institute on World Affairs Records
Creator:
Institute on World Affairs
Identifier/Call Number: MS-0348
Physical Description:
3.13 Linear Feet
Date (inclusive): 1943-2005
Date (bulk): 1950-1969
Language of Material:
English
.
The
Institute on World Affairs (IWA) Records documents the work of the IWA with local, national, and international communities in accomplishing its goal of community
and campus outreach and education on the subject of international affairs and relations. The collection dates from approximately
1951-2005, with the bulk of documents created in the 1950s and 1960s. It consists primarily of paper records, including correspondence
and subject files, generated over the 50+ year course of the group's existence, and has been divided into 5 series:
Correspondence,
Subject Files,
Press Clippings,
Photographs, and
Institute Publications. There are no subseries.
The
Correspondence series includes records dated from 1951-2005. These files primarily document the IWA's process of selecting and engaging
speakers for upcoming IWA Sessions, as well as the process and details involved in assisting speakers with traveling to and
staying in San Diego after they have been officially engaged. This includes scheduling, reservation-making, etc. The correspondence
also includes limited records documenting the IWA's formative years. Some clippings are scattered through the series. Materials
are filed chronologically by year.
The
Subject Files series dates from 1943-2005. It primarily documents events and other activities the IWA participated in over the course
of its existence. These include materials relating to Annual Conferences, a guest book signed by speakers and panel members,
information and publicity relating to speakers, some transcripts, and promotional materials. Also included is historical
information on the early and formative years of the IWA. Some clippings are scattered through the series. Records are filed
alphabetically by file name.
The
Press Clippings series dates from 1951-1991. The clippings document both the public activities of the IWA, as well as its profile in the
community and on campus. They primarily consist of informational articles about the IWA itself, as well as announcements
for different speakers visiting to participate in the Institute.
The
Photographs date almost exclusively from the 1960s, when Dr. Minos Generales was director of the IWA. While only some are captioned
and dated, they primarily document IWA sessions, speakers, and other events. Some are attached to the loose pages of a scrapbook
which was dissembled before arrival at the archives. Because the series is so small, and because many photographs are not
dated or captioned, they have not been organized at the item-level.
The
Institute Publications series dates from 1961-1969, and includes exclusively those materials published by the IWA on such varied subjects as the
IWA's annual proceedings, and the role of warfare, human rights, and the world economy in international relations. They form
a record of the topics the IWA's speakers and guests focused on and studied. They are not foldered, and are filed chronologically.
I. Correspondence, 1951-2005
II. Subject/Office Files, 1943-2005
III. Press Clippings, 1951-1991
IV. Photographs
V. Institute Publications, 1961-1969
This collection is open for research.
The copyright interests in some of these materials have been transferred to or belong to San Diego State University. The nature
of historical archival and manuscript collections means that copyright status may be difficult or even impossible to determine.
Copyright resides with the creators of materials contained in the collection or their heirs. Requests for permission to publish
must be submitted to the Head of Special Collections, San Diego State University, Library and Information Access. Permissions
is given on behalf of Special Collections as the owner of the physical item and is not intended to include or imply permission
of the copyright holder(s), which must also be obtained in order to publish. Materials from our collections are made available
for use in research, teaching, and private study. The user must assume full responsibility for any use of the materials, including
but not limited to, infringement of copyright and publication rights of reproduced materials.
Institute on World Affairs
Identification of item, folder title, box number, Institute on World Affairs Records, Special Collections and University Archives,
San Diego State University Library.
The Institute on World Affairs at San Diego State was founded in 1942 by Dr. Abraham Nasatir, a member of San Diego State
College's History faculty. It is the second-oldest institute of its kind west of the Mississippi. From 1942 until 1954 it
met in the main auditorium of the First Methodist Church, at Ninth and C Streets in downtown San Diego. In 1954 it was transferred
to the San Diego State College campus.
Dr. Nasatir directed the Institute until 1949, when he was succeeded by Minos D. Generales, a member of the Political Science
faculty at San Diego State. In 1949 an Advisory Board was created for the Institute which was representative of wide international
interests in international affairs. The IWA was moved to San Diego State College as a non-profit organization then called
the "Council on International Affairs." In 1957 the IWA's annual session was first broadcast over local radio, and since 1959
sessions have been broadcast over Los Angeles networks and the facilities of the National Association of Educational Broadcasters
Network.
The purpose of the annual Institute is to make available to San Diegans the most authoritative interpretations of international
affairs and current problems in the broadest possible sense; the goal to engage those who have been most intimately involved
in the examination or policy formulation of world issues. Lecturers and panel members have included leading officials from
the US State Department, US Defense Department, numerous diplomatic representatives from around the globe, scientists connected
with research affecting national security, psychologists, business leaders, economists and political scientists who engage
in comparative studies of ideologies and institutions throughout the world.
Formerly, the IWA held annual three-week sessions every August, including a series of public lectures on matters of international
significance. Today, ninety-minute sessions are held each Thursday evening from February through early May, where speakers
address assembled guests for roughly 40 minutes, followed by a question and answer period. Speakers represent a wide range
of viewpoints, backgrounds, political persuasions, and fields of specialization. In accordance with its motto,
Audiatur Et Altera Pars (Let the Other Side Also be Heard), the Institute has striven to maintain its policy of strict non-partisanship throughout
its existence. It is a recognized instrument for the expression of opinions by governments and institutions of their official
stands in policies and in the issues of our time. The IWA is currently directed by Dr. George Bergstrom.
1998-012
Subjects and Indexing Terms
Institutional Archives
Photographs
International relations--Research--California--San Diego--History--Sources
World politics--1945-1989--Research--California--San Diego--History--Sources
World politics--1989- --Research--California--San Diego--History--Sources
San Diego State University. Institute on World Affairs--Archives