Overview
Francis Keppel (1916-1990), dean of the Harvard University Graduate School of Education from 1948 to 1962, worked at Harvard University in several different positions from 1939 until his death in 1990, including assistant dean of freshmen, dean of the Graduate School of Education, senior lecturer in education, and Overseer. His papers consist of professional and personal correspondence, biographical and family materials, writings, audio recordings and transcripts of speeches, teaching materials, and photographs.
Dates
- Creation: 1939-1990 and undated
Creator
- Keppel, Francis, 1916-1990 (Person)
Researcher Access
The Papers of Francis Keppel are open for research with the following exceptions: Harvard University records are restricted for 50 years. Personnel and student records are closed for 80 years. Restrictions are noted at the folder level. Requires further review by the archivist; please see reference staff for details.
Conditions Governing Use
The audio cassettes found in HUGFP 109.55 aud/c may be closed for research; please see reference staff for details.
Extent
21.48 cubic feet (56 document boxes, 18 folders, 13 audio cassette tapes, 2 half-document boxes, 2 legal half-document boxes)The Papers of Francis Keppel document his career as an educator, both at Harvard University and within the federal government. It contains professional and personal correspondence, biographical and family materials, writings, audio recordings and transcripts of speeches, teaching materials, and photographs.
Much of the correspondence relates to his involvement with a variety of professional organizations, including the Aspen Institute for Humanistic Studies, of which Keppel served as director from 1974 to 1990. It also includes letters related to his work as the Joint Army and Navy Commissioner on Welfare and Recreation. His speeches include testimonies before various government committees, as well as presentations given at various colleges, clubs, and organizations. The audio cassettes contain recordings of speeches given by Keppel in August 1989.
Keppel’s teaching materials include course descriptions, course evaluations, syllabi, and case studies. His writings, which include published articles and drafts, relate to the role of government in education, the role of education in society, quality standards for teachers and student achievement, the use of standardized tests, the implementation of integration and desegregation, and the use of technological innovation in education.
Some prevalent themes found throughout Keppel’s correspondence, writings, and speeches include educational reform, the role of the federal government in the formulation and administration of educational policy, the role of the government in providing education to disadvantaged children and loans to lower and middle income college students, desegregation and the integration of public schools, the importance of art education, and international educational practices.
Biographical note on Francis Keppel
Francis Keppel (1916-1990), dean of the of the Harvard University Graduate School of Education from 1948 to 1962, worked at Harvard University in several different positions from 1939 until his death in 1990, including assistant dean of freshmen, dean of the Graduate School of Education, senior lecturer in education, and Overseer.
He received his AB from Harvard in 1938, then spent a year studying sculpture at the American Academy in Rome. Keppel returned to the United States in 1939, where he was appointed assistant dean of freshmen, a post he held until 1941. During World War II, he served as Secretary of the Joint Army and Navy Committee on Welfare and Recreation and served in the Information and Education Division of the War Department, where he was promoted to the rank of First Lieutenant. In 1948, Keppel returned to Harvard, where he was appointed dean of the Graduate School of Education by President Conant at age 32, making him the youngest dean in Harvard’s history. During Keppel’s fourteen-year tenure, the Graduate School of Education gained a strong national reputation as a leading institution for teacher preparation and quadrupled its full-time enrollment.
In 1962, Keppel resigned from Harvard to become the United States Commissioner of Education under President John F. Kennedy. Keppel also served as Assistant Secretary in the Health, Education and Welfare Department. During his term in office, Keppel actively enforced the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and saw the passing of the Elementary and Secondary Education Acts of 1963 and 1965.
Throughout his career, he was actively involved in several professional organizations, including as Director of the Aspen Institute from 1974 to 1990, which developed workshops and seminars for prominent educators. Keppel was also a member of Phi Beta Kappa and a fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. He received the 350th Medal for exemplary service to Harvard and the James B. Conant Award for distinguished service to American Education. From 1967 to 1973, Keppel served on Harvard’s Board of Overseers.
After a nearly fifteen-year absence from Harvard, he returned as a senior lecturer in education in 1976, a post he maintained until his death in 1990.
Arrangement
This collection is arranged in thirteen series:
- Personal Correspondence, 1941-1948 (HUGFP 109.4)
- Personal and Biographical Papers, Including Correspondence, 1939-1990 (HUGFP 109.5)
- Personal and Biographical Papers: Photographs, 1939-1990 (HUGFP 109.5 p)
- Professional Correspondence and Related Papers, 1948-1990 (HUGFP 109.10)
- Personal and Biographical Papers: Photographs, 1939-1990 (HUGFP 109.10 p)
- Writings by Keppel, 1961-1988 (HUGFP 109.45)
- Speeches, Articles, etc., [circa 1942-1957 and undated] (HUGFP 109.50)
- Speeches and Related Papers, 1958-1989 (HUGFP 109.55)
- Speeches and Related Papers: Photographs, 1958-1989 (HUGFP 109.55 p)
- Speeches: Audio Cassette Tapes, 1989 (HUGFP 109.55 aud/c)
- Materials Relating to Teaching, 1977-1985 (HUGFP 109.65)
- Photograph of James B. Conant with Inscription, 1963-1965 (HUGFP 109.90 p)
- Personal Papers (HUGFP 109.90 pf)
Immediate Source of Acquisition
HUGFP 109.4: Gift of Edith S. Keppel, October 15, 1990; Accession 12078.
Inventory update
This document last updated 2022 April 22.
Processing Information
This finding aid was created by Olivia Mandica-Hart in November 2020. Information in this finding aid was assembled from legacy paper inventories and container management data. The collection was not re-examined by the archivist.
Creator
- Keppel, Francis, 1916-1990 (Person)
- Title
- Keppel, Francis, 1916-1990. Papers of Francis Keppel, 1939-1990 and undated : an inventory
- Status
- completed
- Author
- Harvard University Archives
- Date
- November 17, 2020
- Description rules
- dacs
- Language of description
- und
- EAD ID
- hua88020
Repository Details
Part of the Harvard University Archives Repository
Holding nearly four centuries of materials, the Harvard University Archives is the principal repository for the institutional records of Harvard University and the personal archives of Harvard faculty, as well as collections related to students, alumni, Harvard-affiliates and other associated topics. The collections document the intellectual, cultural, administrative and social life of Harvard and the influence of the University as it emerged across the globe.
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