Guide to the Howard Robert Swearer papers, 1973-1990

(bulk 1976-1990)

John Hay Library, University Archives and Manuscripts
Box A
Brown University
Providence, RI 02912
Telephone: Manuscripts: 401-863-3723; University Archives: 401-863-2148
Email: Manuscripts: hay@brown.edu; University Archives: archives@brown.edu

Published in 2020

Collection Overview

Title:	Howard Robert Swearer papers
Date range:	1973-1990, (bulk 1976-1990)
Creator:	Swearer, Howard R. (Howard Robert), 1932-1991
Extent:	51 Linear Feet 38,240 items
Abstract:	Consists of subject files dating from 1976 to 1990, most of which were created while Howard Robert Swearer was President of Brown University. Subjects documented in the collection include alumni and alumnae; athletics; admissions; the Bio-Med program; the Corporation; commencements; physical planning; faculty; libraries; students; the cooperative program between Brown University and Tougaloo College; and gifts to the University. Civil rights and minority affairs on the Brown University campus, including issues about status of women; Afro-American studies; Asian-American students; Hispanic American students; the American Civil Liberties Union; sexual harassment; and discrimination are documented. Student topics documented include the university radio station, WBRU; issues pertaining to Iranian students (ca.1978-1980); campus organizations; and protests about Central Intelligence Agency recruiting on campus. There are files on Richard Salomon, Thomas J. Watson, and Baruch Korff.
Language of materials:	English
Repository:	John Hay Library, University Archives and Manuscripts
Collection number:	OF.1C.15

Scope & content

Consists of subject files dating from 1976 to 1990, most of which were created while Howard Robert Swearer was President of Brown University. Subjects documented in the collection include alumni and alumnae; athletics; admissions; the Bio-Med program; the Corporation; commencements; physical planning; faculty; libraries; students; the cooperative program between Brown University and Tougaloo College; and gifts to the University. Civil rights and minority affairs on the Brown University campus, including issues about status of women; Afro-American studies; Asian-American students; Hispanic American students; the American Civil Liberties Union; sexual harassment; and discrimination are documented. Student topics documented include the university radio station, WBRU; issues pertaining to Iranian students (ca.1978-1980); campus organizations; and protests about Central Intelligence Agency recruiting on campus. There are files on Richard Salomon, Thomas J. Watson, and Baruch Korff.

Access Points

Subject Organizations

• Brown University--Presidents
• Tougaloo College
• Brown University. Division of Biology and Medicine

Subject Topics

• Brown University -- Afro-American Studies Program
• Brown University--Corporation
• Brown University -- Program in medicine
• Brown University -- Afro-American Studies Program
• Minority college students
• African American college students
• Latin American students
• College students, Black

Arrangement

Organized as the President's office originally arranged them in chronological series. The files are arranged alphabetically within each chronological section. Series IX and Series X are files that were sent to the University archives at a later date.

• Series I. 1976-1977
• Series II. 1977-1978
• Series III. 1978-1980
• Series IV. 1980-1982
• Series V. 1982-1984
• Series VI. 1984-1986
• Series VII. 1986-1988
• Series VIII. 1988-1990
• Series IX. Additional files relating to foundations
• Series X. Additions

Biographical / Historical

Howard Robert Swearer (1932-1991), fifteenth president of Brown University, was born in Hutchinson, Kansas, on March 13, 1932. He attended public schools in Wichita, and graduated from Princeton's Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs in 1954. He earned his master's degree in political science in 1956, and his Ph.D. degree in 1960, both from Harvard. He was appointed an American Political Science Association Congressional Fellow in 1959. He taught political science from 1960 to 1967 at UCLA, where he was also acting director of the Russian and East European Studies Center. He directed Peace Corps training programs for Africa and Latin America, and was program officer in the international division and program officer in charge of European and international affairs for the Ford Foundation. In 1970 he became president of Carleton College, where he led a highly successful capital campaign. He accepted the presidency of Brown in August 1976 after having withdrawn as a candidate because of responsibilities at Carleton and some months later being persuaded to reconsider. He was quietly sworn in on January 18, 1977. His formal inauguration accompanied by eleven days of festivity and speech making took place in April. He arrived as the University was recovering from a financial crisis and acknowledged, "Brown has gotten on top of its finances, and I had nothing to do with it." He did a great deal to improve Brown's finances as he led a five-year $158 million capital campaign to a successful conclusion with a final total of over $180 million raised. From 1978-79 to 1987 Brown had ten balanced budgets and the endowment increased from $95.4 million to $356.7 million. External support for research grew from $13.2 million to $44.3 million. During his administration, Brown went through a period of unprecedented growth in both physical plant and curricular programs. Some long deferred building projects were finally realized – the Geo-Chem Building, the Olney-Margolies Athletic Center and the Pizzitola Sports Center, and the renovation of the John Hay Library. The medical program was enhanced by the building of the Center for Health Care Studies and the enlargement of the J. Walter Wilson Laboratory and the Bio-Medical Building. Brown's position as a leader in computing was strengthened by the building of the Center for Information Technology and the establishment of the Institute for Research in Information and Scholarship. In 1979, Harriet Sheridan, a former colleague of Swearer as dean of the College at Carleton College, became the first woman dean of the College at Brown. Interdepartmental cooperation was encouraged by the creation of new centers, programs, and departments devoted to the study of women, alcohol addiction, world hunger, public policy, and population. Swearer advocated public service for undergraduates and was a co-founder of the Campus Compact, a national public service organization. International research was enhanced by the creation of the Institute for International Studies and agreements for academic exchange with foreign universities. When the Faculty awarded him the Susan Colver Rosenberger Medal in 1983, this event marked the first time that a current president had been so honored. The accompanying citation attested to "the abundant feeling of security you have rekindled in all of us ... the bright optimism you have produced."

In the fall of 1984 he took a two-month leave from the University to travel in Asia, Indonesia, Australia, and Hawaii. He met with Brown alumni, discussed exchange arrangements with Keio University and the Chinese University of Hong Kong, and was also part of a fifteen-member Rhode Island delegation to encourage Japanese investment in the state's biomedical and marine industries. In a survey in 1987 supported by the Exxon Education Foundation in which 485 educational leaders ranked college presidents, Swearer was considered to be among the most effective presidents in the country. In October 1987 he stunned the Brown community by announcing that he wished to resign the presidency. After taking stock of his career on the occasion of his 55th birthday, he had decided that after nearly eighteen years as a college president, eleven at Brown, it was time to move on to other interests. After leaving in December 1988, he was appointed director of Brown's Institute for International Studies which he had helped to create. At Commencement in 1989 he and his wife, Jan Swearer, both received honorary degrees, which were awarded as a surprise in addition to the other scheduled honors of the occasion. Stricken with cancer, he moved to Thompson, Connecticut, where he died on October 19, 1991.

Swearer stated his views on the office of president early in his administration:

"If a person is successful as a university president, it's more a reflections of the members of the university community than on the individual. The university community makes or breaks the president, rather than the other way round. I think a university president can have his or her greatest impact by bringing people together and convincing them to do what they would like to do anyway."

Biographical note is drawn from Martha Mitchell's Encyclopedia Brunonia.

Access & Use

Access to the collection:	There are no restrictions on access, except that the collection can only be seen by prior appointment. Some materials may be stored off-site and cannot be produced on the same day on which they are requested.
Use of the materials:	Although Brown University has physical ownership of the collection and the materials contained therein, it does not claim literary rights. Researchers should note that compliance with copyright law is their responsibility. Researchers must determine the owners of the literary rights and obtain any necessary permissions from them.
Preferred citation:	Howard Robert Swearer papers, OF.1C.15, Brown University Archives.
Contact information:	John Hay Library, University Archives and Manuscripts Box A Brown University Providence, RI 02912 Telephone: Manuscripts: 401-863-3723; University Archives: 401-863-2148 Email: Manuscripts: hay@brown.edu; University Archives: archives@brown.edu

Administrative Information

ABOUT THE COLLECTION
ABOUT THE FINDING AID
Author:	Finding aid prepared by Raymond Butti.
Encoding:	This finding aid was produced using ArchivesSpace on 2020-10-19.
Descriptive rules:	Describing Archives: A Content Standard

Additional Information

Inventory

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