Summary
Robert James Bernard (February 6, 1894 – June 9, 1981[1]) was an American academic administrator. He was instrumental in the founding of the Claremont Colleges, a consortium of adjacent, affiliated higher education institutions in Claremont, California, and served as its leader from 1942 to 1963.[2]
Early life edit
Bernard was born in Collinwood, Ohio, and grew up in Denver, Colorado.[1] He briefly attended Colorado College before transferring to Pomona College when his family moved to Hollywood.[1] He majored in English and graduated in 1917.[1]
Career edit
After graduation, he became an assistant to Pomona president James Blaisdell.[1] When the Claremont Colleges were established in 1925, he was appointed secretary under Blaisdell.[2] He became administrative director in 1942; his title changed to managing director in 1944 and president in 1959.[2]
Later life edit
Bernard retired in February 1963.[1] He was president and then executive director of the Association of California Independent Colleges and Universities between 1961 and 1967.[2] He wrote a history of the Claremont Colleges, titled An Unfinished Dream, shortly before his death in 1981.[2]
Legacy edit
The Bernard Field Station, a biological research station owned by the Claremont Colleges, is named after him.[3]
References edit
- ^ a b c d e f Bernard 1982, p. xvii.
- ^ a b c d e Kennedy, Dana (June 15, 1981). "President Fashioned a Group From Six Academic Clusters". Los Angeles Times. p. 20. Retrieved April 7, 2021.
- ^ "The Bernard Biological Field Station: A Short History, 1920s-2015". Friends of the Bernard Biological Field Station. Retrieved October 22, 2021.
Bibliography edit
- Drake, Frances Bernard (1996). Two Men and an Idea: Robert Bernard with James Blaisdell, Partners in Pioneering the Group Plan of the Claremont Colleges. Claremont University Center. OCLC 35369939.
- A Brief History of the Group Plan of the Claremont Colleges. Claremont, California: Claremont University Center. 1993.
- Bernard, Robert J. (1982). An Unfinished Dream: A Chronicle of the Group Plan of The Claremont Colleges. Claremont, California: Claremont University Center. OCLC 9199564.