Arthur Flemming
Arthur Flemming | |
---|---|
Chair of the United States Commission on Civil Rights | |
In office 1974–1981 | |
President | Gerald Ford Jimmy Carter |
Preceded by | Steve Horn (acting) |
Succeeded by | Clarence M. Pendleton Jr. |
3rd United States Secretary of Health, Education, and Welfare | |
In office August 1, 1958 – January 19, 1961 | |
President | Dwight D. Eisenhower |
Preceded by | Marion B. Folsom |
Succeeded by | Abraham Ribicoff |
Director of the Office of Defense Mobilization | |
In office January 20, 1953 – March 14, 1957 | |
President | Dwight D. Eisenhower |
Preceded by | Henry H. Fowler |
Succeeded by | Gordon Gray |
Personal details | |
Born | Kingston, New York, U.S. | June 12, 1905
Died | September 7, 1996 (aged 91) Alexandria, Virginia, U.S. |
Resting place | Montrepose Cemetery |
Spouse | Bernice Moler |
Children | 5 |
Education | Ohio Wesleyan University (BA) |
Arthur Sherwood Flemming (June 12, 1905 – September 7, 1996) was an American government official. He served as the
Early life and education
Flemming was born in Kingston, New York, to Judge Harry Hardwick Flemming and the former Harriet (née Sherwood).[1] Flemming graduated from Ohio Wesleyan University, class of 1927 and a member of the Epsilon chapter of Alpha Sigma Phi fraternity. On December 14, 1934, he married Bernice Virginia Moler. They had five children.[1]
Federal government career
Flemming's government career began in 1939, when President Franklin D. Roosevelt appointed him to the U.S. Civil Service Commission. While in this capacity, he was appointed to the Navy Manpower Survey Board under Vice Admiral Adolphus Andrews, which was established to determine whether shore establishments were over-manned or under-manned and whether Navy's manpower was being utilized to the best possible advantage.[2]
He was a member of the
Flemming was also a co-founder of the Save Our Security coalition, a Social Security advocacy group. He was the recipient of two Presidential Medals of Freedom, one in 1957, from President Dwight D. Eisenhower and the second one in 1994, from President Bill Clinton. Secretary of Health and Human Services Donna Shalala said of Flemming: "He was one of the great intellects of social policy, combining extraordinary knowledge with a rare gift for policy-making."[3]
Secretary of Health, Education and Welfare
From 1958 until 1961, Flemming served as
After decreased sales of cranberries during the holiday season, the
Flemming retired at the end of President Eisenhower's administration on January 19, 1961. Later, he was the chairman of the Commission on Civil Rights.
University president
Barely out of his degree at AU, Flemming was petitioning Roosevelt for New Deal funds to start a program at American University.[7] The program was the School of Public Affairs, and Flemming was its first director.[1]
Flemming served as president of Ohio Wesleyan University. He was the university's first president to be an alumnus and a layman (non-ordained minister). Having served in the Franklin D. Roosevelt and Harry S. Truman administrations, his Wesleyan inauguration at the June commencement of 1949 drew many famous speakers and celebrities.
From 1961 to 1968, Flemming served as president of the University of Oregon. During his popular and controversial tenure, the number of students grew from 8,000 to 14,000, and federal funding for the university rose dramatically. Flemming was responsible for the addition of the School of Community Services and Public Affairs, the Pine Mountain Observatory and the building of various laboratories on campus. He defended the right of the Communist Party, under the leadership of Gus Hall, to speak on campus and he also convinced Tom Autzen to contribute money toward to the building of Autzen Stadium.
From 1968 to 1971, Flemming served as president of Macalester College in St. Paul, Minnesota. During his short-lived tenure, he founded the Expanded Educational Opportunities (EEO) Program, which provided "total aid," including room & board, books, and travel expenses, to students from "racial minority groups and economically deprived backgrounds."[8] Flemming had a close relationship with Black student groups on campus, even marching with students to protest a St. Paul landlord who had refused to rent to Black students. Former Vice President Hubert Humphrey, who returned briefly to Macalester (where he had previously taught) after losing the presidential election in 1968, also joined the march.[9]
Death
He died of
See also
References
- ^ a b c "Arthur S. Flemming Oral History Interview | Harry S. Truman".
- ^ "All Hands Bulletin, July 1944, pages 14-15" (PDF). media.defense.gov. Navy Heritage Command Websites. Retrieved July 30, 2017.
- ^ Weil, Martin (September 9, 1996). "Arthur Flemming Dies". The Washington Post.
- ^ "The Cranberry Boggle", Time, November 23, 1959
- ^ "Northwest Cranberries Found Contaminated", Lincoln (Neb.) Evening Journal, November 9, 1959, p1
- ^ Allan Mazur, True Warnings and False Alarms: Evaluating Fears About the Health Risks of Technology, 1948-1971 (Resources for the Future, 2004), p112-113
- ^ "American: American University Magazine".
- ^ "Adviosry Council Motion: A Program to Expand Educational Opportunities," Macalester College Archives
- ^ Bernice Flemming, Arhtur Flemming, Crusader at Large: A Memoir, p. 288-289
External links
- Papers of Arthur S. Flemming, Dwight D. Eisenhower Presidential Library Archived January 9, 2015, at the Wayback Machine
- Arthur Flemming, from the United States Social Security Administration
- Paul Douglas Ethics in Government Award
- A film clip "Longines Chronoscope with Arthur S. Flemming (February 27, 1952" is available for viewing at the Internet Archive
- Appearances on C-SPAN