David Emery Sweet (1933–1984) was an American academic and the founding president of

Metropolitan State University Metropolitan State University (Metro State) is a public university in the Minneapolis–St. Paul, Minnesota metropolitan area. It is a member of the Minnesota State Colleges and Universities system.

and later president of

Rhode Island College Rhode Island College (RIC) is a public college in Providence, Rhode Island. The college was established in 1854 as the Rhode Island State Normal School, making it the second oldest institution of higher education in Rhode Island after Brown Uni ...

, where he spearheaded the Leadership Rhode Island program and presided over the college's evolution from a

normal college A normal school or normal college is an institution created to train teachers by educating them in the norms of pedagogy and curriculum. In the 19th century in the United States, instruction in normal schools was at the high school level, turni ...

into a multipurpose college.Dr. David E. Sweet, 51, Dies; Head of Rhode Island College - New York Times
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Early life and education

David Emery Sweet was born on July 9, 1933, in

Holyoke, Massachusetts Holyoke is a city in Hampden County, Massachusetts, United States, that lies between the western bank of the Connecticut River and the Mount Tom Range. As of the 2020 census, the city had a population of 38,238. Located north of Springfield ...

, the son of Adrian John Sweet and Elsie King (''

née A birth name is the name of a person given upon birth. The term may be applied to the surname, the given name, or the entire name. Where births are required to be officially registered, the entire name entered onto a birth certificate or birth re ...

:'' Jocelyn) Sweet. His family moved to

Memphis, Tennessee Memphis is a city in the U.S. state of Tennessee. It is the seat of Shelby County in the southwest part of the state; it is situated along the Mississippi River. With a population of 633,104 at the 2020 U.S. census, Memphis is the second-mos ...

in his youth, and he graduated from Central High School in 1951. He received his BA degree from

Drury College Drury University, formerly Drury College and originally Springfield College, is a private university in Springfield, Missouri. The university's mission statement describes itself as "church-related". It enrolls about 1,700 undergraduate and grad ...

in 1955, graduating ''

magna cum laude Latin honors are a system of Latin phrases used in some colleges and universities to indicate the level of distinction with which an academic degree has been earned. The system is primarily used in the United States. It is also used in some So ...

''; and his MA (1958) and his

PhD PHD or PhD may refer to: * Doctor of Philosophy (PhD), an academic qualification Entertainment * '' PhD: Phantasy Degree'', a Korean comic series * ''Piled Higher and Deeper'', a web comic * Ph.D. (band), a 1980s British group ** Ph.D. (Ph.D. albu ...

(1968) from

Duke University Duke University is a private research university in Durham, North Carolina. Founded by Methodists and Quakers in the present-day city of Trinity in 1838, the school moved to Durham in 1892. In 1924, tobacco and electric power industrialist James ...

, where he was an instructor in

political science Political science is the scientific study of politics. It is a social science dealing with systems of governance and power, and the analysis of political activities, political thought, political behavior, and associated constitutions and la ...

and faculty adviser of the

Christian Science Christian Science is a set of beliefs and practices associated with members of the Church of Christ, Scientist. Adherents are commonly known as Christian Scientists or students of Christian Science, and the church is sometimes informally know ...

Organization on campus.

Career

Sweet was an instructor at

Ohio University Ohio University is a Public university, public research university in Athens, Ohio. The first university chartered by an Act of Congress and the first to be chartered in Ohio, the university was chartered in 1787 by the Congress of the Confeder ...

for the year 1959-1960 and then served as an associate professor of political science at

Illinois State University Illinois State University (ISU) is a public university in Normal, Illinois. Founded in 1857 as Illinois State Normal University, it is the oldest public university in Illinois. The university emphasizes teaching and is recognized as one of th ...

, 1960–1969. From 1969 to 1971 he served as vice chancellor of the Minnesota State College System.''Who Was Who In America, Vol. IX, 1985-1989.'' Willmette, Illinois: Marquis Who's Who, Macmillan Directory Division, 1989, p. 349 In 1971, he was chosen to become the founding president of Metropolitan State College, an innovative non-traditional institution in

St. Paul, Minnesota Saint Paul (abbreviated St. Paul) is the capital of the U.S. state of Minnesota and the county seat of Ramsey County. Situated on high bluffs overlooking a bend in the Mississippi River, Saint Paul is a regional business hub and the center o ...

, which evolved into

. In 1974, a national panel on higher education in the United States selected Sweet as one of the fifty most effective university and college presidents in the country.Rhode Island College: Meeting the State’s Needs Through Time
Rhode Island College. In 1977, Dr. Sweet left Metro State to become president of

, at the time a college for teachers. During its tenure there, he spearheaded the Leadership Rhode Island program and presided over the college's evolution into a multipurpose college granting bachelors as well as master's degrees in many fields. While president, he continued to teach political science, and enrollment in the school grew by almost fifteen percent. Sweet was published in the fields of political science and education extensively, and received many grants and fellowships for his work.

Personal life

David E. Sweet married Arleene Pachl on June 4, 1954. They had two children. He was a Christian Scientist. Sweet was active in his community in Rhode Island, and sat on numerous boards and committees.

Death

Sweet died on September 16, 1984, in a

Providence, Rhode Island Providence is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Rhode Island. One of the oldest cities in New England, it was founded in 1636 by Roger Williams, a Reformed Baptist theologian and religious exile from the Massachusetts Bay ...

hospital after suffering an apparent diabetic seizure and cardiac arrest, but apparently declining medical treatment there. He was buried with his parents, Elsie and Adrian Sweet, in Spring Grove Cemetery,

Florence, Massachusetts Florence is a village in the northwestern portion of the city of Northampton, Hampshire County, Massachusetts. During the 19th century, Florence was a thriving manufacturing village shaped by progressive ideas on religion, abolitionism, and educa ...

. His wife Arleene died in 2017.

Legacy

David E. Sweet has been memorialized in the following ways: * Leadership Rhode Island established the annual David E. Sweet Award. * Rhode Island College's David E. Sweet Center for Public Policy is named for him. * Rhode Island College's dormitory Sweet Hall was named for him.http://www.ric.edu/Residential-Life/halls_sweet.php Sweet Hall dormitory

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Sweet, David E. 1933 births 1984 deaths Drury University alumni Duke University alumni Duke University faculty Illinois State University faculty Ohio University faculty Rhode Island College faculty American Christian Scientists American political scientists Heads of universities and colleges in the United States Burials in Massachusetts People from Holyoke, Massachusetts People from Providence, Rhode Island 20th-century political scientists