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Faculty of Arts and Letters, Office of the Dean, John Dings, Associate Dean (Undergraduate Education), Office files

 Collection — Box: 1-4
Identifier: 16-1-899

Scope and Contents

The collection of the Office Files of John Dings, circa 1986-1989, contains materials relevant to his position as Associate Dean of Undergraduate Education. Included is information about administration of the Faculty of Arts and Letters, scheduling, special programming and events, and course development.

Types of materials included in the collection are memoranda, clippings and articles; minutes from committee meetings; handwritten notes; reports and proposals; departmental schedules; floor plans; publicity materials; course descriptions; and correspondence.

Dates

  • 1985-1989

Language of Materials

Collection material in English.

Terms of Access

The Faculty of Arts and Letters, Office of the Dean, John Dings, Associate Dean (Undergraduate Education) Office files, 1985-1989 are open for research.

Copyright

University records are public records and once fully processed are generally open to research use. Access to student and personnel records is restricted for 80 years from the date of creation. See reference staff for details. No restrictions on access apply to published records. The restriction of university records is subject to compliance with applicable laws, including the Freedom of Information Act. Most papers may be copied in accordance with the archives' usual procedures unless otherwise specified.

Access to student and personnel records is restricted for 80 years from the date of creation. See reference staff for details. The restriction of university records is subject to compliance with applicable laws, including the Freedom of Information Act.

Some materials containing confidential information were removed from Series 1 (Administration). These materials are restricted until 2069.

Historical Note

The Faculty of Arts and Letters came into being in 1967 when the University planned a massive academic reorganization. The academic units were divided into seven different faculties, of which Arts and Letters was one. It originally consisted of a number of departments that were in the original College of Arts and Letters including Art, Classics, Drama and Speech, English, Modern Languages and Literatures, and Music. Other newly-formed departments were added to the faculty later like American Studies, African-American Studies, Comparative Literature, and the Center for Media Study. It was disbanded in 1998 when the University again reorganized and reestablished the College of Arts and Sciences.

Dr. John Dings came to the State University of New York at Buffalo in 1968 as an Assistant Professor of English. He held many departmental positions in both English and American Studies, serving as the Department Chairman of American Studies from 1976 to 1978 and Chairman of the English Department from 1985-1986. He was also active in the administration of Rachel Carson College, even serving as Master of the college from 1982 to 1985. From 1986 to 1989 he served as the Associate Dean of Undergraduate Education for the Faculty of Arts and Letters. Upon his retirement he received the title of Associate Professor Emeritus.

Extent

1.75 Linear Feet (3 manuscript boxes, 1 half manuscript box)

Abstract

The collection of the Office files of John Dings, circa 1986-1989, contains materials relevant to his position as Associate Dean of Undergraduate Education. Included is information about administration of the Faculty of Arts and Letters, scheduling, special programming and events, and course development.

Arrangement

The collection is organized into seven distinct series:
I. Administration, provides general information about the Faculty of Arts and Letters and its administration between 1986 and 1989. Included are plans for the Language Lab, reports, proposals, articulation agreements with community colleges, meeting minutes of the Committee on Degree Requirements and materials for a Teacher-Course evaluation system.
II. Committees, contains Undergraduate College Executive Committee Meeting Minutes for the 1987-1988 and1988-1989 academic years.
III. Conferences, provides information on the planning and funding of the Women Playwrights Conference, directed by Anna Kay France, Associate Professor of English
IV. Courses, traces the development and implementation of both Freshman Seminars and a revitalized version of World Civilization.
V. Programs, contains information on the Master's Degree in American Studies program at Wende Prison. Included are program proposals, correspondence with student inmates and faculty memos.
VI. Summer Sessions, provides information on the planning and scheduling of Summer Sessions courses offered by the Faculty of Arts and Letters. The collection includes schedules, course offerings and memoranda.
VII. Undergraduate College, contains meeting minutes for the General Assembly of the Undergraduate College, subcommittee meeting minutes, John Dings' meeting notes, project annual reports, proposals and undergraduate grading policy memos.

Acquisition Information

The University Archives received a collection of materials from Janet Chmielowiec, Office of the Dean of Arts and Sciences, in 1994 (accession number 94-23). The collection contained the office files of John Dings and David Willbern, course proposals for the Faculty of Arts and Letters, and general Arts and Letters materials. In 2004, Kerry Fender processed this accession under the supervision of Karen Walton. John Dings materials were processed as 16/1/899. David Willbern materials were processed as 16/1/940. Course proposals were integrated into 16/1/957. General Arts and Letters files were integrated in 16/1/903.

Accruals and Additions

No further accruals are expected to this collection.

Related Resources

16/1/883 Faculty of Arts and Letters, Office of the Dean, Jon Whitmore Outgoing correspondence, 1985-1989
16/1/940 Faculty of Arts and Letters, Office of the Dean, David Willbern, Associate Dean (Graduate Education), Office files, 1984-1990
16/1/960 Faculty of Arts and Letters, Dean's Office, Outgoing correspondence, 1986-1995 [1987-1992 bulk]

Separated Materials

Material Removed from Administration--African American Studies Search, 1988-1989.

Processing Information

Collection processed by Kerry Fender, July 2004.

Title
Finding Aid for the Faculty of Arts and Letters, Office of the Dean, John Dings, Associate Dean (Undergraduate Education), Office files
Status
Completed
Author
Finding aid prepared by Kerry Fender.
Date
2006
Description rules
Describing Archives: A Content Standard
Language of description
Undetermined
Script of description
Code for undetermined script
Language of description note
English

Repository Details

Part of the University Archives Repository

Contact:
420 Capen Hall
Buffalo New York 14260-1674 US
716-645-2916
716-645-3714 (Fax)