University of California Berkeley - Blue and Gold Yearbook (Berkeley, CA)

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Clark Kerr, the chancellor who led the university through the Free Speech Movement and helped develop the Master Plan for Education, passed away at the age of 92. here is anyone to whom students owe a tremendous amount of gratitude, it is Clark Kerr. His revolutionary views made him without question, a legend in higher education, said Chancellor Robert Berdahl. Kerr led the University through the Free Speech Movement and helped build the academic reputation of UC Berkeley to what it is today. Kerr was raised on an apple farm in Penn- sylvania by parents who had a deep respect for learning. His mother Caroline put off marriage until she had saved enough money for all of her future children to attend college. Kerr ' s father. Samuel, was the first member of his family to go to college. Kerr attended Swarthmore College, where he was student body president and captain of the debate team. After graduating from Swarth- more in 1932. he traveled around California educating people on the necessity to join the League of Nations. Kerr grew enamored with the West and put off attending Columbia Law School, obtaining a master ' s degree in eco- nomics from Stanford instead. Deciding not to return east for education, he earned his doctor- ate in economics from Cal. His love for Berkeley was evident later, when franklin D. Murphy, UCLA ' s chancellor from 1960-1968. described Kerr as basically being a Berkeley guy. He was going to see that Berkeley was No. 1. Kerr taught labor economics at other uni- versities but returned to UC Berkeley in 1945 as head of the institute of industrial Relations. Kerr began to make a name for himself as an activist through his support of those members of the faculty who refused to sign an oath of loyalty during the Cold War. When the position of chancellor was created at Cal, the faculty suggested Kerr. In Kerr ' s six years as chancellor, eight new residence halls and the student union build- ing were constructed, he brought many of the rising stars In academla to Cal and was a leader In organizing the Pacific Athletic Conference, which has now expanded to ten teams. Dur- ing his tenure, Cal became the third-ranked university in the nation, behind Harvard and Yale. After Robert Sproul resigned in 1958. Ke ' became UC President, a position that he helo for eight-and-a-half years. The California legislature began creating new state colleges in the late 1950s without any plan for growth. He organized committees which formulated what became the Master Plan for Higher Education, which had a three tiered educational system, consisting of the University of California, state colleges, and community colleges, all of which would be free to California residents. Kerr envisioned a mul- tiversity which was renowned for both teach Ing and research, an Institution that affected the lives of all citizens and was distanced from the secluded community of scholars, in a 1967 speech. Kerr said. The best investment that any society makes is in the education of the young people, and this shouldn ' t basically be looked upon myopically as a ' cost; ' it should be looked upon as the best Investment that any society can make. Once the Free Speech movement started In 1964, Kerr ' s position as UC President was precarious. Many UC Regents wanted to be tough on the protesters, and some even called for expulsion. Kerr, however, decided to let the

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kui fc coiO HHi campus decide the fate of the protestors and refused to use force against the students. A lot of students disagreed with Kerr. But every now and then I run into students fronn the Free Speech Movement who tell me they look back on it. and how they admired Kerr. said Martin Myerson. chancellor of Berkeley in 1965. After Ronald Reagan was elected governor In 1966. he fired Kerr at his first regents ' meet- ing. Kerr was seen as a symbol of weakness to conservatives because he chose to negotiate rather than confront, it was later revealed that the FBI and CIA covertly attempted to get Kerr fired because they disagreed with his policies. Students in support of Kerr flew flags at half mast on campus. History will simply know him as the most distinguished university president of the 20th century, said Marty Trow, a profes- sor emeritus of public policy at Cal. In his time as president, enrollment in the UC system skyrocketed from 43.000 to 87.OOO students. He changed what were specialized campuses at Davis. Riverside and Santa Barbara to general campuses. Kerr oversaw the building of three new campuses, each attempting to solve the problem of mass higher education. UC Santa Cruz was pictured as a union of approximately 20 residential colleges, sharing facilities. UC San Diego separated the students into 12 colleges of roughly 2.000 students each and promised to maintain the scientific tradition of Scripps Institute of Oceanography, the base upon which it was built. UC Irvine lacked the Inflexible depart- mental structure of most universities, instead be- ing organized around wide-ranging subject areas. After his dismissal, Kerr received many job ...the FBI and CIA covertly attempted to get Kerr fired because they disagreed with his policies. Clarl( Kerr, left, congratulates a student at a commencement ceremony at the Creek Theatre. offers, from other higher institutions, includ- ing Harvard. Stanford and Swarthmore. Instead, he chose to chair the Carnegie Commission on Higher Education and later the Carnegie Council on Policy Studies in Higher Education. There, he wrote a large series of publications covering all aspects of higher education. Kerr passed away on Monday. December 1, 2003. in his El Cerrito home at the age of 92 after complications from a fall. His health had been deteriorating for roughly a year and a half after suffering from a stroke. A memorial in Zellerbach Hall was held for Kerr on February 20. which drew a crowd of roughly 500 people, rang- ing from top UC officials, state leaders and old friends. Charles E. Young. Chancellor Emeritus of UCLA, called on those in the auditorium to defend and protect this university from those today who do not understand JKerr] or to reduce its greatness, a greatness which was attributed to so much by Clark Kerr Chancellor Berdahl posthumously award Kerr the Berkeley Medal, which was intended to be given to him the week he passed. The award was established In 1981 as the university ' s top honor and is rarely given. The Berkeley Medal is awarded to very distin- guished individuals who exemplify the ideals of the university: this medal describes no one