Records of the President, Edward D. Eddy (Rec. Gr. 1.14)

Biographical/Historical Note

Edward "Ted" Danforth Eddy was born in Saratoga Springs, N.Y. on May 10, 1921, to Edward and Martha (Henning) Eddy. Eddy attended Cornell University where he received a B.A. in Humanities in 1944. Following graduation, he attended Yale University, where he received a masters of divinity degree in 1946. In 1956 he received a Ph. D. in Humanities from Cornell University. (For additional information on Eddy's degrees consult Who's Who in America, Vol. 1, MacMillan Directory Division, 45th Edition, 1988-1989.)

Eddy served as acting president for the University of New Hampshire from 1949 to 1954. In 1954 he became Provost, a position which he held from 1954-1955. He was Vice President of the University of New Hampshire from 1955 to 1960. In 1960 Eddy left New Hampshire to serve as President at Chatham College in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. He was resident at Chatham College for seventeen years, from 1960 to 1977. In 1977 he was appointed Provost of Pennsylvania State University from 1977-1983. Eddy concluded his career as an academic administrator at the University of Rhode Island (URI), where he served as the ninth president from 1983 to 1991.

Eddy’s tenure as President at the University of Rhode Island was marked by periods of success, as well as notable political conflicts and controversy. In 1986 a sharply divided Board of Governors held a behind-closed-doors session that culminated in a 5 to 3 vote in favor of giving Eddy only a one year renewal on his contract instead of the customary three years. When news of this development leaked out prematurely, many interpreted the maneuver as an attempt to force Eddy from his position. Chairman Albert E. Carlotti and his colleague Eleanor McMahon were targeted as the prime conspirators. Eddy weathered the ordeal with ease due to strong support and protest from URI faculty, student body, alumni, Governor Edward DiPrete, and Lt. Governor Richard Litch. As a result, on March 21, 1986, the Board of Governors reversed its decision and granted Eddy a three-year contract.

During the eighties, Eddy was successful in enhancing the University's image nationally and abroad. He was instrumental in expanding the Graduate School of Oceanography and improving its programs and research initiatives. He also secured a ten-year accreditation for the University of Rhode Island from the New England Association of Schools and Colleges. He fought for increased faculty wages, arguing that improved salaries would improve the University's curriculum and status.

Despite his success in enhancing URI's image, the Board of Governors granted Eddy a two-year terminal contract in 1989, effectively ending his tenure as President in 1991. Once again, the decision took place in a closed session, this time while Eddy was in Turkey at an international conference on university governance where he was chosen to be spokesperson. State Senator William C. O'Neill resigned from the Board of Governors, charging that the closed session decision was unethical and improper. Chairman of the Board of Governors, Albert Carlotti, rebutted by asserting that Eddy was planning on retiring in two years anyway when he turned seventy.

Eddy's decisions triggered controversy as well. In 1989, he hired fifteen-year veteran of Division III NCAA, McKinley Boston, as the new Athletic Director. Many board members were surprised by Eddy's decision to disregard ten months of research and interviews and hire someone with fewer qualifications than most of the unconsidered applicants.

In 1990 Eddy faced a second wave of opposition which lasted until the end of his tenure. Part of the difficulties arose due to statewide budget cuts that left URI seriously under financed. Students were dissatisfied with the lack of available courses and in January of 1990 they staged a protest on the quadrangle prompting Eddy to confront the issue. In addition, faculty complained of over-enrollment of classes and numerous unfilled positions. Moreover, a host of other problems plagued Eddy. The majority of the campus's buildings were in a serious state of disrepair; the university library was forced to stop purchasing badly needed books, Tau Kappa Epsilon fraternity and the soccer team were charged with alcohol and sexual abuse violations that gained statewide publicity. As URI's reputation was declining, several faculty representatives charged Eddy with being a lame duck president and requested his resignation.

During this time the University's relations with state government were deteriorating. In 1990, Governor Edward DiPrete was heckled off stage by URI students at a speech on campus where he was to explain his budget cuts for the University. The Governor charged that Eddy had not taken any measures to subdue the disruption. Eddy also drew fire in 1991 for accepting a $4,750 retroactive adjustment raise. After more acrimonious discussion with state politicians, he decided to donate that sum to the URI Foundation.

Meanwhile, Eddy kept very active in issues abroad and at home. In 1991, he attended the Pacific-Basin Finance Conference in South Korea to help promote trade in capital markets there. He had been working with Senator Claiborne Pell since 1988 to pass a $2.2 million cooperative agreement to bring marine fishery technologies to developing countries. The success of this venture brought additional funding to the Graduate School of Oceanography program and reestablished URI's position in international affairs. In 1991, he also signed a faculty senate recommendation to expel the ROTC from the University if it did not end its discriminatory practices against homosexuals. Eddy gave that organization two years to implement this new standard, but many faculty, students, and alumni felt this was far too much time.

Eddy was also an ardent advocate of education reform. In 1992 he led an investigation of the Providence school system as part of his work with educators and community leaders in PROBE (Providence Blueprint for Education). He also traveled to Zimbabwe as a correspondent in support of higher standards of education as Chairman of the board for "Teachers of Africa."

On May 17, 1998 President Eddy and his wife, Mary, received honorary degrees from the University of Rhode Island in recognition of their valuable support and active participation in the improvement of public education in Rhode Island. Edward Eddy died on June 18, 1998 at his home in Wakefield, RI.