Finding Aid for College of Engineering Subject File, 1895- | University of Illinois Archives

Title: College of Engineering Subject File, 1895-

ID: 11/1/1

Primary Creator: University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. College of Engineering

Extent: 40.73 cubic feet

Arrangement: By file number, type of material, and subject. Alphabetical subject subject files are further arranged chronologically.

Subjects: Agency for International Development, Civil Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Long Range Planning, Military Aeronautics, National Association of State Universities and Land Grant Colleges, Naval Engineering, Physics, World War I - Scientific Research and Development, World War I - Service and Training

Formats/Genres: Papers

Languages: English

College of Engineering Subject File includes correspondence, reports, minutes, agendas, programs, and related material concerning administrative matters and committee reports (1895-1903), College and departmental reports (1895-1907), war activities (1917-20), course and curriculum additions and revisions (1929-59), and the International Cooperation Administration/ University of Illinois Survey of Kabul University, Afghanistan (1959). The World War I material includes files on the School of Military Aeronautics (1917-18); faculty, staff, students and alumni participation in war work and military service (1917-20); exemptions and reserve corps (1917-18); S.A.T.C. program (1918); special war courses (1917-18); statistics; equipment; and letters of recommendation. Also includes files on the Agency for International Development (1960-68), the Land Grant Colleges Meetings (1956-61), and the Long Range Planning Committee (1959-71), and files on fund-raising and development potential for the Campaign for Engineering (1986-87). Additionally, alphabetical subject files relate to departmental affirmative action committees; the development and use of the Alumni Foundation Information System (AFIS); the establishment of a Center for Supercomputing Research and Development in 1985; research proposals and committees devoted to interdisciplinary artificial intelligence/cognitive science research; the planning committee for the Engineering Open House; renovations and additions made to the Digital Computer Laboratory; the activities of and surveys conducted by the Dean's Student Advisory Committee (DSAC); the establishment of the Computational Science and Engineering graduate program; the development of an aeronautical and astronautical graduate curriculum for employees of the McDonnell Douglas Company in St. Louis, delivered via Electronic Blackboard; the establishment of the National Center for Supercomputing Applications (NCSA); and the creation of the Engineering Experiment Station. Correspondents include Ira O. Baker, Arthur N. Talbot, Milo Ketchum, Edward H. Rockwell, C. W. Parmelee, W. F. M. Goss, Edmund J. James, David Kinley, Melvin L. Enger, Louis N. Ridenour, William L. Everitt, A. F. Graziano, Edwin L. Goldwasser, Mac E. Van Valkenburg, and William R. Schowalter, among others.

Restricted records have been transferred to 11/1/64.

Organized when the University opened in 1868 and formed as a college in March, 1873, the College of Engineering operates an experiment station, twelve departments, and a graduate program.

The duties of the Dean of the College of Engineering have evolved from being chairman at faculty meetings to being chief administrator for and representative of the College within the University system.¹ In this capacity as chief administrator, the Dean has the power to create positions and offices under his direct control in order to meet his obligations to both faculty and students.²

The Measurement Program was created in 1948.³ It is a branch of the Engineering Experiment Station, which was founded in 1909 and placed under the control of the Dean of the College.⁴ It functions as a service group for the entire campus by calibrating and repairing optical and electrical laboratory equipment used for experimentation or instruction.⁵

Student Placement is an office providing information and assistance to graduating students seeking employment.⁶ This office developed as a result of the University's policy of leaving employment counseling to the deans of the colleges.⁷ Its budget and staff are incorporated into the general administrative allocations of the College.⁸

The Bioengineering office was created in 1973 when the Urbana-Champaign Senate approved a recommendation from the College of Engineering for the establishment of a bioengineering option. Because students in any of the engineering curricula are eligible to participate in this option, this office was placed under the control of the Dean of the College.⁹

1. Ira O. Baker and Everett King. A History of the College of Engineering of the University of Illinois, 1868-1945, p. 114-116.

2. Statutes, September 1, 1957, p. 10.

3. Board of Trustees Transactions, 44th Report, June 15, 1948, p. 1289.

4. Ira O. Baker and Everett King. A History of the College of Engineering of the University of Illinois, 1868-1945, p. 116.

5. Interview with the Acting Director, February, 1980.

6. Interview with the Assistant Dean, February, 1980.

7. Annual Register, 1943-1944, p. 109.

8. Board of Trustees Transactions, 41st Report, June 24, 1941, p. 317.

9. Board of Trustees Transactions, 57th Report, March 21, 1973, p. 234.

Agency for International Development
Civil Engineering
Electrical Engineering
Long Range Planning
Military Aeronautics
National Association of State Universities and Land Grant Colleges
Naval Engineering
Physics
World War I - Scientific Research and Development
World War I - Service and Training

Repository: University of Illinois Archives

Accruals: 6/15/1967; 7/21/1981; 6/2/2003; 7-12/2013; 1-4/2014

Acquisition Source: Dean's Office, College of Engineering

Processing Information: Given that many of the files contain sensitive/confidential info, the files were split into two records series per the recommendation of William Maher -- The College of Engineering Subject File and the Dean's Restricted Subject File (11/1/64)