Thomas Glenn Carpenter (February 27, 1926 – January 6, 2021) was an American educator and

university A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United States ...

administrator. He was the founding President of the

University of North Florida The University of North Florida (UNF) is a public research university in Jacksonville, Florida. It is part of the State University System of Florida and is accredited by the Commission on Colleges of the Southern Association of Colleges and Sc ...

(UNF), serving from 1969 to 1980, and was President of

Memphis State University } The University of Memphis (UofM) is a public university, public research university in Memphis, Tennessee. Founded in 1912, the university has an enrollment of more than 22,000 students. The university maintains the Herff College of Engineering ...

(now the University of Memphis) from 1980 to 1991. The University of North Florida's Thomas G. Carpenter Library is named for him.

Early life

Carpenter was born on February 27, 1926, a son of

Walker Carpenter Walker Glenn "Bill" "Big Six" Carpenter (June 3, 1893 – September 24, 1956) was an American football Tackle (American football), tackle for John Heisman's Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets football, Georgia Tech Golden Tornado of the Georgia Inst ...

.Obituary, Thomas Glenn Carpenter, in the Memphis ''Commercial Appeal'' newspaper, issue of Sunday, 17 Jan 2021, p. B8, https://www.newspapers.com/image/762049642/?terms=%22thomas%20glenn%20carpenter%22%20&match=1, accessed 3/4/2023 He attended

Georgia Tech The Georgia Institute of Technology, commonly referred to as Georgia Tech or, in the state of Georgia, as Tech or The Institute, is a public research university and institute of technology in Atlanta, Georgia. Established in 1885, it is part of ...

for two years, during which time he enlisted in the

U.S. 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 o ...

and played for the

Yellow Jackets Yellowjacket or yellowjacket is the common name in North America for predatory social wasps of the genera '' Vespula'' and '' Dolichovespula''. Members of these genera are known simply as "wasps" in other English-speaking countries. Most of th ...

college football team.Schafer, pp. 42–43. He also joined the Phi Delta Theta fraternity. Before completing his degree he was called to active duty, and was stationed in the Pacific Theatre at the end of

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 opposing ...

. He was discharged in 1946 and enrolled at several colleges, and attended a Baltimore Colts football training camp, before relocating 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 ...

with his wife, Oneida. There he enrolled at Memphis State College (now the University of Memphis), earning a

bachelor's degree A bachelor's degree (from Middle Latin ''baccalaureus'') or baccalaureate (from Modern Latin ''baccalaureatus'') is an undergraduate academic degree awarded by colleges and universities upon completion of a course of study lasting three to six ...

in Business in 1949. He received his

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 Economics from

Baylor University Baylor University is a private Baptist Christian research university in Waco, Texas. Baylor was chartered in 1845 by the last Congress of the Republic of Texas. Baylor is the oldest continuously operating university in Texas and one of the ...

in 1950, and in 1954 he relocated to

Florida Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and to ...

to pursue further studies at the

University of Florida The University of Florida (Florida or UF) is a public land-grant research university in Gainesville, Florida. It is a senior member of the State University System of Florida, traces its origins to 1853, and has operated continuously on its ...

.Schafer, p. 43.

Academic career

Carpenter began his career in education while at the University of Florida, serving as an economics instructor as well as Assistant Director of Housing. He earned his

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 1963. He subsequently took positions at

Florida Atlantic University Florida Atlantic University (Florida Atlantic or FAU) is a public research university with its main campus in Boca Raton, Florida, and satellite campuses in Dania Beach, Davie, Fort Lauderdale, Jupiter, and Fort Pierce. FAU belongs to the 12-ca ...

and the

University of West Florida The University of West Florida (West Florida or UWF) is a public university in Pensacola, Florida. Established in 1963 as part of the State University System of Florida, the university sits on the third largest campus in the State University Sys ...

, where he was the second person hired.Schafer, p. 8. In 1969 he was appointed by the

Florida Board of Regents The Florida Board of Regents was from 1965 to 2001 the governing body for the State University System of Florida, which includes all public universities in the state of Florida, United States. It was created to replace a predecessor body called t ...

as the first president of a planned new state university at

Jacksonville Jacksonville is a city located on the Atlantic coast of northeast Florida, the most populous city proper in the state and is the List of United States cities by area, largest city by area in the contiguous United States as of 2020. It is the co ...

, to be named the

. He assumed the office on August 1, 1969. As president Carpenter oversaw the development of the school's 1,000-acre woodland tract on Jacksonville's

Southside Southside or South Side may refer to: Places Australia * Southside, Queensland, a semi-rural locality in the Gympie Region Canada * South Side, Newfoundland and Labrador, a community in the St. George's Bay area on the southwest coast of Newf ...

and the construction of the first buildings.Schafer, p. 41. Under Carpenter's leadership, the university celebrated its groundbreaking ceremony on September 18, 1971, and its official opening on October 2, 1972. He was responsible for declaring the campus a nature preserve. "Lake Oneida", a man-made lake in the preserve, is named for his wife, Oneida. Carpenter also took special interest in the

library A library is a collection of materials, books or media that are accessible for use and not just for display purposes. A library provides physical (hard copies) or digital access (soft copies) materials, and may be a physical location or a vir ...

, and oversaw the construction of the current facility, completed in 1980. On August 15, 1981, following Carpenter's departure from the university, the library was rededicated and renamed the Thomas G. Carpenter Library. In 1980 Carpenter stepped down as President of the University of North Florida, and was succeeded by interim President Andrew A. Robinson. The same year he accepted the presidency of his alma mater Memphis State, serving until 1991.

Later life

After retiring from Memphis State, Carpenter retired to

Blowing Rock, North Carolina Blowing Rock is a town in Watauga and Caldwell counties in the U.S. state of North Carolina. The population was 1,397 at the 2021 census. The Caldwell County portion of Blowing Rock is part of the Hickory– Lenoir– Morganton Metropo ...

, with his wife, Oneida. He remarried after her death, and he and his second wife continued visiting the University of North Florida for major events. He died on January 6, 2021, in

Winston-Salem, North Carolina Winston-Salem is a city and the county seat of Forsyth County, North Carolina, United States. In the 2020 census, the population was 249,545, making it the second-largest municipality in the Piedmont Triad region, the 5th most populous city in ...

, at the age of 94.

References

Bibliography

* UNF Thomas G. Carpenter Library Factsheet. https://web.archive.org/web/20121105132635/http://www.unf.edu/library/about/factsheet.aspx {{DEFAULTSORT:Carpenter, Thomas G. 1926 births 2021 deaths University of Florida alumni Heads of universities and colleges in the United States Baylor University alumni Presidents of the University of North Florida People from Blowing Rock, North Carolina Military personnel from North Carolina