4D/1984-1998 Dean of Students: Mary S. Campbell

Click here to see the box list for this collection.

Restrictions: An effort has been made to keep as much material open as possible, hence the separation of portions of folders rather than restricting the whole folder. The following types of materials are restricted:

• 1. Student records generated and maintained by the college cover by FERPA (Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act): grades, work, faculty/class evaluations, questionnaires, recommendations, et cetera. Information will be released only if permission is granted by the office, which created the documents.
• 2. Minutes and other records of the Board of Trustees. Access to this material is granted only through the Trustees. Requests for access should be directed to the Clerk of the Board of Trustees. Members of the Wellesley College Senior Staff may have access when the information is necessary for their work.
• 3. Information relating to specific salaries, pensions or financial transactions between the College and individual employees. Access to this material must be granted by the President’s Office.
• 4. Materials relating to reappointment, promotion and tenure are restricted. Access must be granted by the President’s Office.
• 5. Recommendations and performance evaluation of individual employees are restricted, as are evaluations of candidates for College positions. Access must be granted by the President’s Office.
• 6. Materials published by consortia of colleges and universities, specifically the Consortium on Financing Higher Education (COFHE) and the Higher Education Data Sharing (HEDS), which conduct surveys of various institutes promising confidentially. Members of Senior Staff may have access when the information is necessary for their work.

• Lucy Wilson, Dean of Students, 1939-1954
• Teresa C. Frisch, Dean of Students, 1954-1966
• Jean V. Crawford, Dean of Students, 1966-1968
• Joan Melvin, Dean of Students, 1968-1971
• Katherine R. Peebles: Acting Dean of Student Activities, 1971-1972
• Maud Chaplin, Dean of Studies, 1971-1974
• Susan Fedo, Coordinator Student Services, 1971-1979
• Elizabeth Blake, Dean of Academic Programs, 1974-1978
• Lucetta Mowry, Acting Dean of Academic Programs, 1978-1979
• Florence Ladd, Dean of Students, 1979-1984
• Mary S. Campbell, Dean of Students, 1984-1998

Mary S. Campbell (Molly), a Wellesley alumna, Class of 1960, became Dean of Students in July 1984. She started working at Wellesley in August 1978 filling several positions: class dean, lecturer in the Mathematics Department and Assistant to the President. She spent much of her first year as Dean of Students examining how the Student Services Division worked. In her first annual report to the President, she lists goals for 1984-1985 as “evaluation of programs, procedures and budgets, support cooperation in the division, keep informed about students’ concerns” and quality of life on campus and, finally, to “be visible.”

In 1984 the Dean of Students was Head of the Student Services Division and responsible for the academic and non-academic life of students. The Class Deans, Dean of Continuing Education, Director of Academic Assistance, Coordinator of Schneider Center, Director of the Center for Women’s Careers, Chaplain, Director of Residence, Director of Health Services, Director of Harambee House, Director of Slater International Center, Study Abroad Advisor and Director of the Stone Center all reported to her.

Campbell felt from the beginning that there had to be more communication and cooperation among the offices in the Student Services Division and with other divisions of the college. This effort became a priority of her deanship. She emphasized communication and set up short term task forces to discuss issues across department and division lines.

Her annual reports review the departments in her charge, In general all ran smoothly, but she constantly stressed that they must look at objectives of the division as a whole. Topics of interest and concern keep reappearing: enrollment projects, broadening academic assistance by providing more help to students with disabilities, starting a summer program for first year students who might need extra help in the beginning, and getting more faculty involved. There was constant concern about racial tension on campus. Wellesley made a real effort to attract and retain a more diverse student population, but seemed to lag on building a diverse faculty and administration. In 1987 President Keohane named a Task Force on Racism. Campbell was a member.

As the college community became more diverse, the emphasis on multiculturalism continued. Campbell acknowledged that students from different cultures often wished to confer with someone familiar with their background. In addition to Harambee House and the Slater International Center, in 1991-1992 Campbell named advisors for Latina and Asian students. ICAN (Intercultural Awareness Now) was an important part of orientation. The Chaplaincy/Religious Life Office added religious advisors from several non-western traditions. These were all part of the effort to build a more diverse community.

All administrators are faced with budgets and must make efforts to control spending and, in some instances, consolidate staff. The “Massachusetts miracle” came to an end in the late 1980s and early 1990s and the economy took a dive. Concerned with finances, priorities and planning, the college established a committee to look at Wellesley in the 90s. The Administrative Services Task Force was charged with reviewing and making recommendations about efficient use of administrative staff and where reductions might be possible. In 1991-1992 a Volunteer Incentive Payment Program (VIPP) retirement was offered. A number of Students Services Division employees took advantage of the VIPP, which allowed for the reorganization of several offices. After the reorganization several staff members served in more than one role, which both streamlined staffing, and increased communication and cooperation.

Campbell retired in 1998.

The Campbell records date from July 1, 1984, to June 30, 1998. The 60 linear feet of materials were transferred from the Dean of Students office in several accessions. (See list at the end of the finding aid.)

The records are primarily those of Molly Campbell, but include some files that may be those of others such as Marcie Schorr Hirsch (Acting Dean of Students spring 1990 while Campbell was on sabbatical), Charleen Vanelli (Dean’s Secretary 1981-1992), or Dorothy Folino (Administrative Assistant, 1993). The records also include items from Joanne Murray (Director of Special Programs in 1991-1992 and Associate Dean of Students from 1992 - ) and Lorraine Ward (Special Project Director 1996 - ), but usually these are informational copies for, or memos to, Campbell.

The records are arranged alphabetically in a single subject file. In instances of more than one folder per subject, the files are arranged chronologically. Restricted materials were removed from the main sequence. Notice of removal is given with an explanation of the new location. Many of Campbell’s records were filed by the name of the person who held a specific position rather than the name of their position. To facilitate access in the future, I renamed the files listing the office first, followed by the person’s name. In some instances the person (i.e. Joanne Murray or Marcie Schorr Hirsch) held two offices and it is sometimes difficult to figure out which material applies to which role. Those files entitled "President Keohane: Meetings" are probably issues discussed during Campbell's meetings with her. Those entitled "President Keohane" may be material generated in the President’s Office, but the distinctions are not very clear.

In general these records relate to all aspects of student life as represented by the many offices that report to the Dean of Students: Class Deans, Continuing Education, Academic Assistance, Schneider Center, Center for Women’s Careers, Chaplain, Residence, Health Services, Harambee House, Slater International Center, Study Abroad Advisor and the Stone Center. Other files are common to all senior administrators at Wellesley such as Academic Council, Administrative Council and Senior Staff. These files can be found elsewhere, but are retained in this collection when a large portion is annotated. The records include annual reports, task force and committee reports, meeting materials (minutes, agendas, handouts), correspondence and budgets, as well as material relating to policy development and planning for orientation and special programs for students.

In most cases the original titles of folders have been retained as the title or a portion of the title. A number of offices changed names during this period for various reasons. For instance, the placement office changed its name three times during Campbell’s years as Dean starting as the Center for Women’s Careers, then the Career Center, and finally the Center for Work and Service, the last name change reflecting its role in supporting volunteer opportunities and internships as well as job searches. Files on the Campus Compact and Community Services have information on volunteer options. During this time the Academic Assistance Program becomes the Learning and Teaching Center (LTC). LTC files relate to academic support for students as do files on Disabilities, Learning Disabilities, Handicapped Services (in part) and the Summer Enrichment Program (SEP). The change of title from Chaplaincy to the Religious Life Office also reflects a more inclusive view of its mission.

There are a number of files that contain similar topics. The Alcohol and Drug files are virtually the same as the Drug and Alcohol files and closely linked to the Dean’s Round Table on Drinking and Drug Practices. The Academic Honesty/Integrity Round Table, the Center for Academic Integrity, Honor Code and some General Judiciary files are linked.

Wellesley participates in several exchange programs in the United States and other countries. Most files on this subject come under Exchange or Foreign Study; however, the American Collegiate Consortium for East-West Cultural and Academic Exchange, an exchange program with the Soviet Union is filed separately. The Wellesley-MIT Exchange is the primary exchange. There are several groups of files that contain materials on the special relationship with MIT. The Double Degree Program allowed a Wellesley student to receive degrees from both Wellesley and MIT over a period of five years. The Undergraduate Research Opportunities Program (UROP) at MIT was open to Wellesley students and Upward Bound was a joint summer program for urban children.

The role of the Dean of Students includes advising and those who assist in advising, Class Deans, Freshmen Coordinators among others. During Campbell’s tenure the Dean was also very involved in Wellesley’s continuing effort to build a diverse, multicultural community is reflected in the following files: Affirmative Action, Asian Students, Cultural Advising Network, Equal Opportunity, Harambee House, ICAN (Intercultural Awareness Now), Lesbian/Bisexual Issues, Multiculturalism, Racism and Slater International Center.

Campbell’s records also include materials on reaccreditation, a once a decade process that requires the college to looks at itself with a critical eye. Additionally, in 1990 a committee was formed to look forward and set priorities for the decade ahead. The Committee for Wellesley in the Nineties was divided into several task forces. Most on the material in this collection relates to the Student Services Task Force.

The collection contains several files titled Upsetting Issues. In cases where there has been sufficient material on a particular topic I made a separate folder. If there was little material on a topic it was filed as Upsetting Issues: Various.

Duplicates beyond three copies have been removed from the collection as have routine office expenses, photocopy slips, files listing individual parking fines and requests to return to college early and unannotated Senate (College Government) minutes.

Click here to see the box list for this collection.

Accession Numbers: A85-028, A87-032, A87-040, A88-040, A89-021, A90-022, A91-019, A92-039, A92-058, A93-082, A94-019, A95-031, A96-014, A96-015, A97-058, A98-026, A99-026, A00-047, A01-034, A02-052, A03-025, A03-028

Produced: February 3, 2005 by Mary Bicknell