John Tyler Caldwell (December 19, 1911 – October 13, 1995) was an American educator who presided over three universities, including

North Carolina State University North Carolina State University (NC State) is a public land-grant research university in Raleigh, North Carolina. Founded in 1887 and part of the University of North Carolina system, it is the largest university in the Carolinas. The universit ...

Early life

John Tyler Caldwell was born on December 19, 1911 in

Yazoo City Yazoo City is a U.S. city in Yazoo County, Mississippi. It was named after the Yazoo River, which, in turn was named by the French explorer Robert La Salle in 1682 as "Rivière des Yazous" in reference to the Yazoo tribe living near the river's m ...

Mississippi Mississippi () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States, bordered to the north by Tennessee; to the east by Alabama; to the south by the Gulf of Mexico; to the southwest by Louisiana; and to the northwest by Arkansas. Miss ...

. He received a B.S. from

Mississippi State College Mississippi State University for Agriculture and Applied Science, commonly known as Mississippi State University (MSU), is a public land-grant research university adjacent to Starkville, Mississippi. It is classified among "R1: Doctoral Unive ...

in 1932, an M.A. 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 ...

in 1936, and a Ph.D. 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 ...

from

Princeton University Princeton University is a private university, private research university in Princeton, New Jersey. Founded in 1746 in Elizabeth, New Jersey, Elizabeth as the College of New Jersey, Princeton is the List of Colonial Colleges, fourth-oldest ins ...

in 1939 as a Julius Rosenwald Fellow.

Career

He was a professor of political science at Holmes Junior College from 1932–1936 and was a professor at

Vanderbilt University Vanderbilt University (informally Vandy or VU) is a private research university in Nashville, Tennessee. Founded in 1873, it was named in honor of shipping and rail magnate Cornelius Vanderbilt, who provided the school its initial $1-million ...

from 1939-1947. Meanwhile, Caldwell also entered the

US Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage of ...

as an Ensign in 1942 to serve in

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

and was awarded a

Bronze Star The Bronze Star Medal (BSM) is a United States Armed Forces decoration awarded to members of the United States Armed Forces for either heroic achievement, heroic service, meritorious achievement, or meritorious service in a combat zone. Wh ...

for his service in the

Battle of Okinawa The , codenamed Operation Iceberg, was a major battle of the Pacific War fought on the island of Okinawa by United States Army (USA) and United States Marine Corps (USMC) forces against the Imperial Japanese Army (IJA). The initial invasion of ...

. He left the Navy in 1946 as a Lieutenant Commander. Caldwell was named president of the

University of Montevallo The University of Montevallo is a public university in Montevallo, Alabama. Founded on October 12, 1896, the university is Alabama's only public liberal arts college and a member of the Council of Public Liberal Arts Colleges. The University of ...

Alabama (We dare defend our rights) , anthem = "Alabama (state song), Alabama" , image_map = Alabama in United States.svg , seat = Montgomery, Alabama, Montgomery , LargestCity = Huntsville, Alabama, Huntsville , LargestCounty = Baldwin County, Al ...

in 1947. After leaving Montevallo in 1951, he served as president of the

University of Arkansas The University of Arkansas (U of A, UArk, or UA) is a public land-grant research university in Fayetteville, Arkansas. It is the flagship campus of the University of Arkansas System and the largest university in the state. Founded as Arkansas ...

. Here, he supervised the development and expansion of the University's Graduate school and saw the beginning of the process of racial integration. In 1959, Caldwell was named the eighth chancellor of

. During his tenure, the university established the School of Physical Sciences and Applied Mathematics and the School of Liberal Arts. After his retirement from the office in 1975 Caldwell continued to teach in the Department of Political Science. Caldwell was an

Eagle Scout Eagle Scout is the highest achievement or rank attainable in the Scouts BSA program of the Boy Scouts of America (BSA). Since its inception in 1911, only four percent of Scouts have earned this rank after a lengthy review process. The Eagle Sc ...

, recipient of the

Distinguished Eagle Scout Award The Distinguished Eagle Scout Award (DESA) is a distinguished service award of the Boy Scouts of America (BSA). It is awarded to an Eagle Scout for distinguished service in his profession and to his community for a period of at least 25 years aft ...

, and worked with Scouting much of his life.

Death and legacy

Caldwell died in

Raleigh Raleigh (; ) is the capital city of the state of North Carolina and the seat of Wake County in the United States. It is the second-most populous city in North Carolina, after Charlotte. Raleigh is the tenth-most populous city in the Southeas ...

North Carolina North Carolina () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States. The state is the 28th largest and 9th-most populous of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, Georgia and So ...

at the age of 83. The NC State Alumni Association established the John T. Caldwell Alumni Scholarship Program (later called the Caldwell Fellows) in 1977 to recruit outstanding high school seniors to NC State. NCSU Libraries Special Collections Research Center serves as the repository for John Tyler Caldwell's manuscript papers and University Archives. Caldwell Hall at NCSU was also named after him. Additionally, the North Carolina Humanities Council named its highest honor after Caldwell.

References

* * Simpson, Ethel C. ''Image and Reflection: A Pictorial History of the University of Arkansas''. Fayetteville: University of Arkansas Press, 1990.

External links

Guide to the John Tyler Caldwell Papers 1893-1996
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Caldwell, John T. 1911 births 1995 deaths People from Yazoo City, Mississippi Duke University alumni Princeton University alumni Vanderbilt University faculty United States Navy personnel of World War II Chancellors of North Carolina State University Leaders of the University of Arkansas United States Navy officers