Doak S. Campbell
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Doak Sheridan Campbell (born 1888, died 1973) was from 1941 to 1957 president of Florida State College for Women and its successor coeducational school,
Florida State University Florida State University (FSU) is a public research university in Tallahassee, Florida. It is a senior member of the State University System of Florida. Founded in 1851, it is located on the oldest continuous site of higher education in the st ...
. He oversaw the creation of this new university."About Florida State University." The Florida State University. Office of University Communications, 23 Sept. 2009. Web. 6 Dec. 2009. . His opposition to the admission of African-American students has caused controversy about the naming of
Doak S. Campbell Stadium Doak S. Campbell Stadium (in full Bobby Bowden Field at Doak S. Campbell Stadium), popularly known as "Doak", is a football stadium on the campus of Florida State University in Tallahassee, Florida. It is the home field of the Florida State Semino ...
in his honor.


Early life

Campbell was born near Waldron, in
Scott County, Arkansas Scott County is a county located in the U.S. state of Arkansas. As of the 2010 census, the population was 11,233. The county seat is Waldron. Scott County is Arkansas' 28th county, formed on November 5, 1833, and named for Andrew Scott, a jus ...
, on November 16, 1888, the first of six children born to Edward and Elizabeth Campbell."The Doak Campbell Papers." Florida State University Libraries. Florida State University Libraries, n.d. Web. 6 Dec. 2009. . He was named after his uncle, Samuel Doak. Upon graduating from high school, he became a licensed teacher, but left after one year to attend Ouachita Baptist College in
Arkadelphia, Arkansas Arkadelphia is a city in Clark County, Arkansas, United States. As of the 2010 census, the population was 10,714. The city is the county seat of Clark County. It is situated at the foothills of the Ouachita Mountains. Two universities, Henderson ...
. He was an intercollegiate debater, orator, and distance runner. He was president of his graduating class and obtained a Bachelor of Arts in music and speech in 1911.


Family life

Doak Campbell was married to Helen Gray Smith from May 28, 1913, until her death in 1938. They had two children: Doak S. Campbell, Jr., (b. February 28, 1915; d. October 1, 2003) and Elizabeth Caroline Campbell (b. November 12, 1920; d. December 3, 2008). Doak Campbell was married to Edna Simmons (1897–1978) from 1941 until his death in 1973.


Career

Doak S. Campbell was Superintendent of the
Columbus, Arkansas Columbus is an Unincorporated area, unincorporated community in Hempstead County, Arkansas, Hempstead County, Arkansas, United States. Columbus is located on Arkansas Highway 73, west-northwest of Hope, Arkansas, Hope. Columbus has a post office ...
, State High School. In 1916, he began teaching chemistry at Central College for Women, a Baptist school in
Conway, Arkansas Conway is a city in the U.S. state of Arkansas and the county seat of Faulkner County, located in the state's most populous Metropolitan Statistical Area, Central Arkansas. Although considered a suburb of Little Rock, Conway is unusual in that ...
. In 1920, he became president of the school. While serving in this role, Central College transformed from a four-year college to a two-year
junior college A junior college (sometimes referred to colloquially as a juco, JuCo or JC) is a post-secondary educational institution offering vocational training designed to prepare students for either skilled trades and technical occupations and workers in su ...
(defunct since 1947). Later in the 1920s, Campbell began attending George Peabody College for Teachers 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 ...
, receiving a
master's degree A master's degree (from Latin ) is an academic degree awarded by universities or colleges upon completion of a course of study demonstrating mastery or a high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional practice.
in 1928 and a
Ph.D. A Doctor of Philosophy (PhD, Ph.D., or DPhil; Latin: or ') is the most common degree at the highest academic level awarded following a course of study. PhDs are awarded for programs across the whole breadth of academic fields. Because it is ...
in 1930, at which time he was hired onto the school's faculty. He became dean of the graduate school at Peabody in 1938, and remained in that position until accepting the presidency of
Florida State College for Women Florida State University (FSU) is a public university, public research university in Tallahassee, Florida. It is a senior member of the State University System of Florida. Founded in 1851, it is located on the oldest continuous site of higher e ...
in September 1941. While at Peabody, Campbell was also a member of the Tennessee State Board of Education and the Board's Middle Tennessee Committee, and came under criticism for his handling of an academic freedom and tenure case in which a tenured teacher had been fired without stated cause. A great boom in enrollment, driven by World War II veterans and the
G.I. Bill The Servicemen's Readjustment Act of 1944, commonly known as the G.I. Bill, was a law that provided a range of benefits for some of the returning World War II veterans (commonly referred to as G.I.s). The original G.I. Bill expired in 1956, bu ...
, forced Florida to create new facilities for them. As a result, the Legislature changed Florida State College for Women to
Florida State University Florida State University (FSU) is a public research university in Tallahassee, Florida. It is a senior member of the State University System of Florida. Founded in 1851, it is located on the oldest continuous site of higher education in the st ...
effective May 15, 1947. The change from a women's college to a coeducational university in 1947 brought an expansion in staff, enrollment, and plant. Campbell served as president of the
Southern Association of Colleges and Schools The Southern Association of Colleges and Schools (SACS) is an educational accreditor recognized by the United States Department of Education and the Council for Higher Education Accreditation. This agency accredits over 13,000 public and priv ...
. He also served as President of the
Florida Baptist Convention The Florida Baptist Convention (FBC) is a group of churches affiliated with the Southern Baptist Convention located in the U.S. state of Florida. Headquartered in Jacksonville, Florida, the convention is made up of 49 Baptist associations and ar ...
, and was called an "outstanding Baptist layman". He was a sometime
Sunday school A Sunday school is an educational institution, usually (but not always) Christian in character. Other religions including Buddhism, Islam, and Judaism have also organised Sunday schools in their temples and mosques, particularly in the West. Su ...
teacher, and a frequent speaker before groups of religious leaders, such as the West Florida Baptist Pastors Conference.


Position on "racial" integration

During Campbell's presidency, Florida came under increasing pressure to integrate its university system after the unanimous ''
Brown v. Board of Education ''Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka'', 347 U.S. 483 (1954), was a landmark decision by the U.S. Supreme Court, which ruled that U.S. state laws establishing racial segregation in public schools are unconstitutional, even if the segrega ...
'' decision of 1954. At that time, only white students were admitted to Florida State or the University of Florida. Campbell has been described as strongly opposed to the admission of African-American students to Florida State. In 2020, Campbell's grandson defended him, arguing that "He was not promoting segregation. He was concerned about protecting the tranquility of the school." According to James Schnur, "Campbell exacted deference from the campus community, suppressed the liberal editorial policy of the semi-weekly ''Florida Flambeau'' newspaper, and refused to tolerate any breach of racial segregation. He forced the campus chapter of the
American Association of University Professors The American Association of University Professors (AAUP) is an organization of professors and other academics in the United States. AAUP membership includes over 500 local campus chapters and 39 state organizations. The AAUP's stated mission is ...
(AAUP) to cancel a regional conference at FSU when he learned that black faculty members from the neighboring
Florida Agricultural and Mechanical University Florida Agricultural and Mechanical University (FAMU), commonly known as Florida A&M, is a public historically black land-grant university in Tallahassee, Florida. Founded in 1887, It is the third largest historically black university in the Un ...
(FAMU) planned to attend." At the time, Tallahassee was racially uneasy because, following the successful
Montgomery bus boycott The Montgomery bus boycott was a political and social protest campaign against the policy of racial segregation on the public transit system of Montgomery, Alabama. It was a foundational event in the civil rights movement in the United States ...
of 1956 and the Supreme Court case ''
Browder v. Gayle ''Browder v. Gayle'', 142 F. Supp. 707 (1956),''Browder v. Gayle''
14 ...
'', local activists, including some students, boycotted Tallahassee buses seeking to integrate them as well. The
Florida Board of Control The Florida Board of Control (1905-1965) was the statewide governing body for the State University System of Florida, which included all public universities in the state of Florida. It was replaced by the Florida Board of Regents in 1965.
, which ran the state's universities, warned students not to get involved in "the Tallahassee integration dispute". In an episode that was reported on nationally, Campbell had no hesitation in expelling a graduate student, John Boardman, who spoke "urging support of a Negro candidate for the Tallahassee City Commission against the white incumbent", and who invited three African students (not African-American) to an FSU party. Campbell required the student newspaper, the Florida Flambeau, to devote less space to integration. He went on record denying that he had said that there would eventually be Negro students at FSU. He expressed regret that Tallahassee Negroes seeking to end segregation were not meeting in
juke joint Juke joint (also jukejoint, jook house, jook, or juke) is the vernacular term for an informal establishment featuring music, dancing, gambling, and drinking, primarily operated by African Americans in the southeastern United States. A juke joint ...
s, because it would have been easy to ban FSU students from them. But they met in churches, leaving Campbell "in a quandary over how to ban student support of integration". Campbell retired from his position on June 30, 1957, but remained in
Tallahassee Tallahassee ( ) is the capital city of the U.S. state of Florida. It is the county seat and only incorporated municipality in Leon County. Tallahassee became the capital of Florida, then the Florida Territory, in 1824. In 2020, the population ...
as president
emeritus ''Emeritus'' (; female: ''emerita'') is an adjective used to designate a retired chair, professor, pastor, bishop, pope, director, president, prime minister, rabbi, emperor, or other person who has been "permitted to retain as an honorary title ...
of Florida State until his death on March 23, 1973.


Legacy

Campbell supported a sports program at Florida State, and encouraged the construction of a football stadium. The stadium was completed in 1950, and named
Doak S. Campbell Stadium Doak S. Campbell Stadium (in full Bobby Bowden Field at Doak S. Campbell Stadium), popularly known as "Doak", is a football stadium on the campus of Florida State University in Tallahassee, Florida. It is the home field of the Florida State Semino ...
in his honor. In June 2020 there was a student petition to remove his name from the stadium because of his opposition to admitting black students, and to rename it for former coach
Bobby Bowden Robert Cleckler Bowden (; November 8, 1929 – August 8, 2021) was an American college football coach. Bowden coached the Florida State Seminoles of Florida State University (FSU) from 1976 to 2009 and is considered one of the greatest college ...
. FSU President John Thrasher asked Athletics Director David Coburn "to immediately review this issue and make recommendations to me." As of December 2022 there has been no response. Campbell donated all his papers, correspondence, etc. to Special Collections, Strozier Library (Florida State's main library), where it may be consulted.


References


External links


Brief biography of Doak S. Campbell
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Campbell, Doak S. 1888 births 1973 deaths Ouachita Baptist University alumni Peabody College alumni Presidents of Florida State University Florida State University faculty People from Scott County, Arkansas