Identity elements
Reference code
Name and location of repository
Level of description
Title
Date(s)
- 1923-1961 (Accumulation)
Extent
0.84 linear feet (2 document cases)
Name of creator
Administrative history
The Administrative Council was the new name given to the Council of Deans in 1942. The Committee of Deans, in existence from 1923, had been made up of the deans of the various areas on campus, including the colleges and the Deans of Men and Women. The Council made decisions on such things as campus rules, students' requests to expand their course load, student absences and disciplinary actions. Also discussed at meetings were administrative matters such as the institution of a vocational course and changing credits for certain courses. The Council approved candidates for degrees and the college calendar. It is not clear whether the president was always included in these meetings, although his name often appears on the minutes.
The name change to Administrative Council did not signify any major changes within the focus of the group. Throughout its lifespan, the nature of the material discussed and decisions made at these meetings remained the same as previous. By the mid 1950's, however, the Council had expanded to include faculty representatives from the Faculty Association.
By 1955, when the council is first mentioned in the Faculty Handbook, the group met weekly with the president to discuss questions of administration or policy brought forth by the president, or to discuss any other questions brought up the any council member. There is no indication of whether this was a decision-making group, but as no other campus group fulfilled the decision making and policy making duties performed by the Council, it can be assumed that they continued to perform these functions. At this time, the president served as the chairman of the Administrative Council. This brief description remains in the Faculty Handbook until the 1970 edition, when first mention is made of the Academic Senate, which did take over the decision-making and policy-making roles outlined above.
Content and structure elements
Scope and content
This collection is composed of the minutes of the meetings and some correspondence of both the Administrative Council and its predecessor, the Council of Deans. For the most part, the minutes are extremely business-like, showing mainly the names and process of certain actions. They do have some interesting facts related to the running of the college, and some of the disciplinary actions and causes for them prove quite amusing. The correspondence file, although quite small, consists mainly of material relating to whether or not someone may not be admitted back to school. Other correspondence refers to the happenings in the various meetings, but this is quite limited. Overall, the material offers a look at some of the administrative concerns and issues surrounding the administration of the land grant institution.
System of arrangement
Conditions of access and use elements
Conditions governing access
This collection is open to researchers without restrictions.
The materials in the Archives do not circulate and may be used in-house only.
Researchers conducting extensive research are asked to make an advance appointment to access archival material. Please call or e-mail prior to visiting the collection and indicate as much detail as possible about a particular topic and intended use.
Physical access
Technical access
Conditions governing reproduction
South Dakota State University supports access to the materials, published and unpublished, in its collections. Nonetheless, access to some items may be restricted as a result of their fragile condition or by contractual agreements with donors.
Languages of the material
- English