James MacAlister (1840-1913) served as the first president of the Drexel Institute of Art, Science, and Industry from 1891 to 1913. He was a proponent of vocational and technical education throughout his career. During his tenure, the institute offered informal courses of study in art and illustration, mechanic arts, domestic arts and sciences, commerce and finance, teacher training, physical education, and librarianship. MacAlister presided over the closing of the department of art (except for the architecture program) in 1905, the physical expansion of the school from the Main Building to additional buildings on Chestnut and 32nd streets, and the growth in the graduation rate from approximately 70 in 1891 to over 500 in 1913. He died in 1913.

Hollis Godfrey (1987-1936) served as president of the Drexel Institute of Art, Science, and Industry from 1913 to 1921. He was educated as an engineer at Tufts, Harvard, and MIT, where he also taught. While living in Boston he was an administrator at the School of Practical Arts in Boston. He came to Drexel in 1913 and was the President until 1921.

Parke Rexford Kolbe, the Drexel Institute's fourth president, served from 1932 to 1942. Before coming to Drexel, Dr. Kolbe was president of the University of Akron from 1913 to 1925 and of the Polytechnic Institute of Brooklyn from 1925 to 1932. As Drexel's president, Dr. Kolbe presided over the decentralization of Drexel's administration and the development of educational programs to support national defense as the threat of U.S. involvement in World War II loomed.

George Peters Rea (1894- 1978) (1942-1944) became President after the death of Parke R. Kolbe. He went to Cornell, graduating in 1915. He was a Captain during the First World War. Rea was the Manager of Bishop’s National Bank located in Hawaii until 1938. His financial career included working with the United States government on financial issues such as the S.E.C. and being the President of the American Stock Exchange.

There had been a committee in charge of Drexel during the time that there was no President after Kolbe’s untimely death. Rea began as President at Drexel during the fall semester of 1942. Rea was President of Drexel during a very difficult time in its history. There was a possibility that the Institute would be closed because of the Second World War and its negative impact on the financial status of Drexel. This did not occur.

There were multiple changes made to the academic departments at Drexel during his tenure. He reorganized the advisory system for students, ensuring students stronger support from professors. Entrance requirements were decreased and certain curriculum was accelerated. The admittance of women was dramatically increased, as were courses specifically designed for female students. Female students were accepted in the engineering program for the first time at Drexel in 1943. Due to increased use of summer classes, students could finish degrees in fewer years than the regular four-year period for academic study. There were also courses which were not academic, but were focused on helping students at home cope with the war and the changes which had occurred in daily life due to war shortages. The School of Library science changed its curriculum and emphasized government employment. Most of the changes made to the curriculum were due to the Second World War and the needs of industry for qualified workers. This was particularly true for the engineering school. Electrical, mechanical and chemistry engineering all changed their required classes and curricula. Women were offered a one year program for a B.S. in secretarial studies. There were new classes across the different departments and schools of Drexel. The emphasis on female students included special days for high school seniors. Women also participated more as editors of the Triangle, Drexel’s student paper. There was the Engineering, Science, and Management War Training Program which offered accelerated training for employment for both men and women.

The Army Service Training Program started at Drexel in 1943. In April of 1944, the students from this program were called into the war. Drexel’s enrollment had been adequate due to the increase in female students and the army programs but in early 1944 the deferment for engineering students ended and student enrollment declined. Drexel reimbursed the tuition for students who were drafted into the army. Faculty members were also drafted into the army. Tuition had to be increased during the war. Other changes that occurred at Drexel during Rea’s administration included the addition of cooperative education to the home economics program. Commencement was added in December and a dean’s list for academic excellence was begun. Rea was a sometimes controversial President of Drexel. Rea did not work closely with the Board of Trustees and frequently acted without their direct approval, which was usually given after the fact. He also hired his sister as dean of women, effectively replacing Ruth A.L. Dorsey, who had held this position for twenty years. The staff of the public relations department left in early 1944 after the director resigned. Rea’s most controversial decision was to sell art and manuscript collections held by Drexel. The manuscripts included works by Edgar Allen Poe and Charles Dickens. The art works were mostly from the nineteenth century. Board of Trustee members included A.J. Paul Drexel, Charles Warner, C.H. Krubhaar, Jr, Charles Biddle, E.P. Simon, Philip C. Staples, and J.E. Gowen during this time period. The Board of Trustees agreed to the sale in November of 1943, however when the Drexel community heard of the proposed plan there was strong animosity to it. This occurred in early 1944 when the decision became public. This controversy contributed to the short length of Rea’s tenure as President of Drexel. He officially left Drexel in August of 1944.

R. C. Disque, (1883-1968), interim president 1944-1945. Disque began working at Drexel in 1918. During his long and varied career at Drexel, he was the dean of faculty, head of the electrical engineering department and dean of the School of Engineering. He was on committees in charge of Drexel during periods when Drexel had no President. Disque was the acting President of Drexel following the resignation Rea. His tenure as President resulted in administrative change because he had been an instrumental member of the administrative staff prior to his Presidency. Another change was that Grace Godfrey, who was the dean of Home Economics, died in August of 1944, just as Disque was assuming acting President duties. Ardenia Chapman took over Godfrey’s position of dean. Both women had been long term members of the Drexel staff. The Board of Trustees also lost, George W. Childs Drexel and John W. Converse, changing the Board and the endowment for the school. The athletic department grew due to student demand during Disque’s term as President. Drexel was one of twenty-two schools who had a Victory Ship, the Drexel, which was launched in San Francisco in April of 1945. It sank in 1946.

Works Consulted Kotzin, Miriam. A History of Drexel University, 1941-1963. Philadelphia: Drexel University Press, 1983, pp.3-172.

McDonald, Edward D., and Edward M. Hinton. Drexel Institute of Technology 1891-1941: A Memorial History. Philadelphia: Haddon Craftsmen, Inc., 1942, pp. 31-120.

There are a wide variety of formats in the collection such as correspondence, pamphlets, photographs, newspapers, and typed writings such as addresses, telegrams, reports, invitations, and transcribed correspondence. Harriet Worrell, secretary to the Office of the President probably produced most of the transcriptions during her time at Drexel.

Each Series is in alphabetical order. The Series are chronologically based on the term of the specific President of Drexel. The largest series is that of Parke R. Kolbe. This series contains diverse material and spans his entire Presidency at Drexel. There is a wide variety of subjects in his series from Communism and the academic community, African American students at Drexel, engineering, faculty and student issues and the Second World War. The Second World War folders include Drexel’s involvement in the war efforts, particularly connected to the ROTC, and the changes in the curriculum which began during the end of Kolbe’s Presidency at Drexel.

The small series in this collection include the presidencies of Rea, Disque, and Creese. Rea and Disque do not have other papers currently housed at the archives, except in Series VIII of this collection. James Creese has a large collection of his own, UR 1.7.

Series 1: James MacAlister, (1891-1913)1 folder (pre 1911) consists of correspondence and drawings from before 1911.

Series 2: Hollis Godfrey, (1914-1921) 13 folders (1914-1926) This series contains writings by Godfrey, including “The Academic Budget”, correspondence and administrative matters connected with the Office of the Presidency. World War I is represented in letters from Drexel students who were part of the S.A.T.C. (Student Army Training Corps). There are also pamphlets and correspondence on the Twenty-Fifth Anniversary of Drexel from 1916.

Series 3: Kenneth Matheson, (1921-1931) 16 folders, (1922-1931) consists of correspondence, newspaper clippings, and photographs. There is material on the development of a new seal for Drexel, the building and dedication of Curtis Hall including photographs of Cyrus H.K. Curtis laying the first stone for the building in 1928 and a photograph of the Curtis Hall Engineering Laboratory from 1929, and accreditation from the Association of American Universities. There is also a folder on the revival of the library program which had been disbanded in 1914 under Godfrey.

Series 4: Kolbe, Parke R., (1932-1942) 200 Folders (1899-1942) This is the largest series in the collection. There is material on the Athletic Departments, including budgets, data from local college athletic departments during the 1930’s, a study from 1931 on athletic departments within the Middle Atlantic region, correspondence with the Board of Trustee Committee on Athletics, reports on the responsibilities for the Athletic Departments of various universities, and correspondence and questionnaires from other university Presidents on the Athletic Departments at their schools.

There is also extensive correspondence from members of the Association of Urban Universities on accreditation, details of conventions including speakers, locations for meetings, and membership. Kolbe frequently presided at meetings for the organization. Documents pertaining to the Association of College Presidents of Pennsylvania are also included in this series. There are meeting minutes, correspondence, studies by the ACPP, and requests for Kolbe to attend meetings of the organization.

There is extensive correspondence to and from alumni, on alumni as delegates to other universities, employment requests, social engagements of Kolbe and his wife with alumni, financial dues for membership in Alumni organizations, correspondence to and from Drexel Alumni Clubs of differing regions in the United States, requests from alumni for graduation requirements for bestowing a degree after they had finished their studies at Drexel, and an analysis by the Bethlehem Steel Company on the academic quality of Drexel engineering graduates. Kolbe was a member of the General Education Committee of the Philadelphia Chamber of Commerce. There are pamphlets, correspondence on legislation before state and federal governments, correspondence with George W. Elliott of the Philadelphia Chamber of Commerce, membership lists of the American Management Association Conference, and membership lists of the Educational Committee of the Phil. Chamber of Commerce.

Data on cooperative courses at Drexel is another important section of this series. One large part of this subject is the Retail Management Course at Drexel during the 1930’s. There is correspondence from the Presidents of Strawbridge’s, Wanamaker’s, B.F. Dewees Inc, and other local retail stores on cooperative agreements between their business and Drexel. There is material on the Drexel Advisory Committee for Retail Management Course, descriptions of the cooperative retail management course, a five-year plan, photocopies of articles on the cooperative plan with local retail stores, and information on retail work for women including available courses and stores. The other material on cooperative courses includes engineering placement, general memoranda on cooperative courses, publications from other colleges which also had cooperative courses, and correspondence with Leeds and Northrup, a possible employer for students.

There is a substantial amount of material on the Engineering Department at Drexel. This includes faculty, service men and the draft during World War II and special exemptions made for engineering majors, student probations, and organization membership.

Kolbe was a chairman of The Philadelphia Engineering Index Committee an important part of the Philadelphia scientific community. There is substantial correspondence between Bliss and Kolbe. Collins P. Bliss was the President of the Committee during the 1930’s. Bliss was a prominent engineer during this time period. There are two folders on the Index which contain membership lists, correspondence on meetings, and publications.

The Engineers Council for Professional Development is another substantial section. There are annual reports by the Engineers Council on Accredited Undergraduate Engineering Curricula from 1938, correspondence with Karl T. Compton, Committee on Engineering Schools, appendices to reports, and correspondence on the status of engineering at other schools. Drexel wanted Recognition for their Non-Degree Programs and worked with other universities to get agreement and help with them on this for all programs offering non-degree course work in engineering. There are committee records, reports, correspondence, meeting minutes, petitions, and other items on this topic.

Materials from two other Engineering Societies are included in the Kolbe Series. They are the Society for the Promotion of Engineering Education-Engineers Council for Professional Development which includes letters from Drexel Technical Institute endorsing a petition to the E.C.P.D. from 1940. There is also meeting minutes from the Board of Trustees of Drexel and correspondence. The other society is that of the Society of Commercial Engineers of Drexel Institute of Technology, which includes correspondence and the Constitution of the Society.

Papers on the ROTC (Reserve Officers Training Corps) are another large section of Kolbe’s series. The topics vary from obligatory participation by students and resistance to this to events held at Drexel to honor the program and its participants. The resistance was led by religious leaders who did not believe that it should be a requirement for male students. There are lists of students who have been excused from the program for health and other reasons. There are also programs from ROTC conferences including one on Communism, students and the ROTC.

There is also “A Study of Drexel Institute” written by Kolbe prior to his position as President of Drexel. There is correspondence on the Alexander Van Rensselaer Lecture Series from 1933 to 1941. These lectures varied in content and the collection includes correspondence, addresses, and other material connected with the administration of the lecture series.

Papers on War Emergency Courses constitute a large part of the material on the Second World War. This consists of two folders which have newspaper articles, telegrams, correspondence, reports, pamphlets, memorandum, questionnaires, and specific data for Drexel’s involvement in the programs. The different departments and issues involved with the War include the Engineering Defense Training Program, Selective Service System, Higher Education and A National Defense, and the Association of American Colleges.

Series 5: George Peters, Rea, 1942-1944, 13 folders, (1941-1945)

The Rea Series contains the text of a radio address, correspondence, interviews, meeting minutes, and academic programs at Drexel. The academic programs include the war effort and its affect on Drexel, such as an acceleration of curricula for the School of Engineering specifically for defense industries. There were also reduced entrance requirements for high school seniors. Materials on coursework in engineering and the effect of World War II on the curriculum include correspondence, brochures, and pamphlets. There is material on the Dean’s List and an update on how Drexel honored students academically including academic honor society requirements and “Institute Day”, which celebrated academic excellence There is also a folder on the Women’s Student Government Association, 1942, which includes correspondence and Grant of Powers and Articles of the WSGA, Discipline Committee.

Series 6: Robert C. Disque, interim president, (1944-1945), 4 folders (1945)

There are interesting items in this series because he was President during the end of World War II. Materials about a memorial service for the students who had died in the war include correspondence, a program and memoranda on the event. Grace Godfrey was the Dean of Women at Drexel for many years who died during Disque’s tenure. There was a memorial to Godfrey, correspondence on her death, newspaper clippings of her obituary, and a small selection of essays and articles by Godfrey. There is also a folder on the “Drexel Victory” which was a war ship named for Drexel. It is listed under “U.S. Maritime Commission” and includes newspaper articles, photographs, speeches, programs, and correspondence.

Series 7: Creese, James (1945-1963), 7 folders (1950-1963) is a small series primarily containing items which were collected during his presidency and not items directly from him. There included personnel matters, including the hiring of Kenneth G. Matheson, Jr. and other administrative issues.

Series 8: General Correspondence, 65 folders, (1891-1958)

This series includes folders from the Office of the President without reference to a specific President and those folders which include the papers of multiple Presidents of Drexel. A large section of this series is those folders which were marked “miscellaneous”. These often included a page or two on a specific topic and this had been combined with a few other unrelated items. This series is quite varied but generally includes correspondence, reports, pamphlets, brochures, and minutes.

There is extensive material on cooperative education under Godfrey and Matheson. This includes reports, correspondence on arrangement of academic courses, essays such as “Communication on Proposed Plan of Educational Re-Organization” and “The Drexel Institute 100-Hour Cooperative Industrial Reconstructional Courses” by Hollis Godfrey, student enrollment tables from 1913, and final reports to the Board of Trustees.

There is material on faculty from multiple Presidential tenures. These include correspondence, finances, cooperative education, research of Drexel staff and class schedules. There are items on the dismissals of faculty, salaries, and departmental issues.

Drexel did not have a nursing program, but hosted classes along with the University of Pennsylvania, for an outside program. There are pamphlets, lists of hospitals which the students worked at in Philadelphia from 1922-1927, and background history of the organization. Mabel F. Huntly, Director of the School for the Teaching of Preliminary Courses in Nursing Education, is a frequent correspondent in this folder.

Series 9: Board of Trustees, 50 folders (1914-1965)

This series consists of papers from a different accession than the majority of the collection. These records were comprised of Board of Trustee Meeting Minutes and make up a series of their own. They consist of writings, correspondence, newspaper articles, budgets, and other items presumably used to prepare for Board of Trustee meetings.

Scope and Content Note Collection summary: This collection consists of subject files created by the Office of the President under the tenures of presidents MacAlister, Godfrey, Matheson, Kolbe, Rea, Disque, and Creese. Subject files cover individuals affiliated with the university, faculty, university committees, historical events, and subjects of interest. They are assumed to have been compiled and arranged at least in part by Harriet Worrell, who worked in the Office of the President during this period; many records contain her annotations. There is correspondence which was retyped by her and arranged in this way throughout the different series. There are also notes on specific subjects within folders, which may have been written by Worrell. The bulk of the collection is from Kolbe’s tenure as President of Drexel.

There is both incoming and outgoing correspondence which has been recorded based on subject.

Arrangement: Alphabetical.

Subjects: Drexel University. Education, higher -- Pennsylvania -- History. Drexel Institute of Art, Science, and Industry. Office of the President. Drexel Institute of Technology. Office of the President. Godfrey, Hollis. Matheson, Kenneth G. Kolbe, Parke R. (Parke Rexford) Disque, Robert C. Rea, George P. Creese, James, b. 1896.

This collection contains correspondence, photographs, minutes, brochures, pamphlets, newspaper clippings, photocopies, and publications.

Series 1: James A. MacAlister Series 2: Hollis Godfrey Series 3: Kenneth G. Matheson Series 4: Parke R. Kolbe Series 5: George P. Rea Series 6: Robert Disque Series 7: James Creese Series 8: General Correspondence Series 9: Board of Trustees

Student and personnel records are closed for eighty years from date of creation.

Transferred from the Office of the President, Drexel University.

Office of the President Records, Drexel University Archives

This collection was refoldered in 2005. A finding aid was written in 2008 by Robin Elliot. The finding aid and box and folder lists were redone at that time. The collection was moved into series based on the President related to the specific folders. The Board of Trustees Series was added.

See UR 1.1 James MacAlister Administrative records, 1.2 Hollis Godfrey Administrative Records, UR 1.3 Kenneth G. Matheson Administrative Records, 1.4 Parke R. Kolbe Administrative Records, and UR 1.7 James Creese Administrative Records at the Drexel University Archives

Biographical notes from the collections. James MacAlister papers, Hollis Godfrey administrative records, JAmes Creese administrative records.

Kotzin, Miriam. A History of Drexel University, 1941-1963, Philadelphia: Drexel University Press, 1983.

McDonald, Edward D., and Edward M. Hinton. Drexel Institute of Technology 1891-1941: A Memorial History. Philadelphia: Haddon Craftsmen, Inc., 1942.