Synopses & Reviews
This book examines the evolution of American universities during the years following World War II. Emphasizing the importance of change at the campus level, the book combines a general consideration of national trends with a close study of eight diverse universities in Massachusetts. The eight are Harvard, M.I.T., Tufts, Brandeis, Boston University, Boston College, Northeastern and the University of Massachusetts. Broad analytic chapters examine major developments like expansion, the rise of graduate education and research, the professionalization of the faculty, and the decline of general education. These chapters also review criticisms of academia that arose in the late 1960s and the fate of various reform proposals during the 1970s. Additional chapters focus on the eight campuses to illustrate the forces that drove different kinds of institutions--research universities, college-centered universities, urban private universities and public universities--in responding to the circumstances of the postwar years.
Review
"A magnificent work of scholarship....No book tells more about the dirty little secrets of universities as they jockey to enhance their prestige and resources. No book tells more about the universities and colleges of a single state. Academia's Golden Age is one of the very best books ever written about the history of American higher education."--Society
"An elegantly written piece of social history that can take its place with pride next to the work of Arthur Schlesinger, Sr., Oscar Handlin, and Samuel Eliot Morison."--Boston Phoenix
"With higher education under fire from so many quarters, a comprehensive history of the development of eight Massachusetts colleges and universities could not be more timely.... From presidential searches to battles over campus expansions, the book provides an exhaustive behind-the-scenes look at some of the nation's leading institutions....Essential reading."--Boston Globe
"Provid[es] critical insights into an unexplored era in American higher education....This readable, scholarly text compares favorably with L.G. Heller's excellent The Death of the American University."--Choice
"With scholarly authority and clarity of style, Richard Freeland has captured brilliantly those brief years during which America put its colleges and universities on a pedestal. He does so with a focus on metropolitan Boston, long considered the academic Athens of America, and he examines that claim in contemporary times. Skillfully treating the overall pattern of development in higher education and that of eight specific institutions, Freeland moves over a wide range from Harvard and M.I.T. to the University of Massachusetts. He examines the triumphs and trials of each. As a onetime faculty member and administrator in all three, I can testify to the quality of his historical analysis and to the gracefulness of his writing. For anyone who wants to understand higher education in the United States today, this book has to be read and pondered."--Robert Wood, Wesleyan University
Synopsis
The quarter century following World War II was a "golden age" for American universities. Students enrolled in record numbers, financial support was readily available, and campuses flourished in a climate of public approval. In the mid-1960s, however, the picture began to change. Student unrest and unexpected financial problems stirred apprehension within higher education and questioning by government officials and other outsiders--an atmosphere that was reinforced in the 1970s by softening student demand, rising college costs, and new concerns about institutional effectiveness. Academia's Golden Age provides the first comprehensive assessment of change among universities in the postwar years, a period that set the framework for contemporary worries about American schools at every level. Combining a general review of national trends with a close study of individual campuses, Freeland provides a fresh perspective on a vital period of educational history and a revealing look at the inner workings of the nation's academic system. Broad analytic chapters examine major developments like expansion, the rise of graduate education and research, the professionalization of the faculty, and the neglect of undergraduate teaching. Additional chapters focus on eight campuses in Massachusetts--Harvard, M.I.T., Brandeis, Tufts, Boston College, Boston University, Northeastern and the University of Massachusetts--to illustrate patterns of change at research universities, college-centered universities, urban private universities, and public universities. Academia's Golden Age can be enjoyed by a wide readership on several levels. For the general reader it provides an illuminating one-volume survey ofhigher education in the post-World War II period. For scholars and specialists it offers an in-depth analysis of a complex time. For those interested in particular institutions it includes concise portraits unavailable elsewhere. All audiences will appreciate the book's wealt
Description
Includes bibliographical references (p. 484-511) and index.