The records from the Douglas M. Knight administration form part of the Duke University President Records and span the years between 1952 and 1971, with the bulk occurring between 1963 and 1969. Records created during the administrations of Hollis Edens, J. Deryl Hart, and Terry Sanford are included. The records are comprised of correspondence, memoranda, proposals, surveys, reports, writings and speeches, minutes, audio-visual media, honorary citations, clippings, and printed matter.
The records of the Knight administration are useful for the study of policies and actions regarding academic planning, student life, development and alumni affairs, campus planning, the university's interaction with both local and regional communities, faculty development, and athletics during the 1960s. With the exception of fund-raising and development, the records do not provide extensive documentation on the aforementioned areas of university life. Rather, the records often introduce the primary concerns in an issue or area as well as portray Knight's views and actions. Therefore, researchers may wish to consult an archivist about related record groups and papers, including records from the Deans of the Woman's College and Trinity College, the Provost, the Office of Student Affairs, the Graduate School, and the papers of Eddie Cameron, Athletic Director.
The Douglas M. Knight Papers comprise seven series. The first series, Subject Files, is alphabetically arranged by topic, and covers a broad range of issues during Knight's term. The next series, Development Files, are also arranged alphabetically, and pertain to university advancement. The third series, Correspondence, is arranged alphabetically by the last name of the correspondant. The Reports series is also arranged alphabetically, and consists primarily of annual reports. The fifth series, Surveys, includes a variety of Duke-related surveys on a variety of topics. The next series, Inauguration and Videorecordings, includes photographs and tapes. The last series, Student Files, includes restricted student information.
Some files are restricted and labeled as such. Please consult an archivist concerning these files.
Born June 8, 1921, in Cambridge, MA, Douglas M. Knight was educated at Yale University and received an A.B. in 1942, an M.A. in 1944, and a Ph.D. in 1946. He served as an instructor and assistant professor of English from 1947 to 1953 at Yale University. Knight then became president of Lawrence University, in Appleton, Wisconsin in 1953.
In 1963, Knight was persuaded to come to Duke University. New beginnings and unique building projects characterized his tenure. The conversion of a science building into an Art Museum, construction of a hyperbaric chamber, a phytotron, and the largest nuclear structure laboratory in the Southeast added new dimensions to research at the University, as did the launching of the first ship built specifically for oceanographic research. In addition, new undergraduate and medical school curricula, interdisciplinary programs in biomedical engineering and forestry management, joint M.D.-J.D. and M.D.-PhD. degrees, and a new School of Business Administration were started. Most significantly the major Perkins Library addition made it possible to double every library service and increase capacity some five times over. That so much was accomplished in a time of increasing national conflict and student confrontation at Duke was remarkable.
In 1969, Knight left Duke to become vice-president of the Educational Development Division of RCA Corporation. He later became president of SEED in 1973, and then president of the Questar Corporation in 1976.
