Notes for Ebenezer Francis Bowditch

Anna was born March 28, 1912 at Haverhill, Essex Co., Massachusetts.

!Who Was Who in America. Volume 10, 1989-1993. New Providence, New Jersey: Marquis Who's Who, 1993: BOWDITCH, EBENEZER FRANCIS, educational consultant; b. Framingham Center, Mass., June 4, 1912; son of John Perry and Alice (Bradford) B.; m. Anna Mitchel Hale Aug.3, 1935; children: Ebenezer Francis, Susan
Hale, Nathaniel Hale. Student, Milton (Mass.) Acad., 1925-31; AB, Harvard U., 1925. Tchr. athletics and sci. Shady Hill Sch., Cambridge, Mass., 1933-35; tchr. Milton Acad., 1935-37; asst. dean of freshmen Harvard Coll., 1937-39; headmaster Park Sch., Indpls., 1939-41, Lake Forest (Ill.) Acad., 1941-51; dean of students MIT, 1951-56, spl. adviser to the pres., 1956-57; adminstrv. dir. Rsch. Soc. for Creative Altruism, 1957-58; ednl. cons., 1958-90. Mem. AD and Hasty Pudding clubs of Harvard, Cum Laude Soc. at Milton Acad., Harvard Club (N.Y.C.). Republican. Home: Rye Beach N.H. Died Feb. 6, 1990.

!The Tech - Friday, May 18, 1951 (The Official Newspaper Of The M.I.T. Undergraduates) Cambridge, Massachusetts: West Campus Home For Dean Bowditch - - Soon after his arrival at M.I.T. this summer, E. Francis Bowditch, the new Dean of Students, will take up residence in the Moore House, just west of Baker House. Dean Bowditch, at present headmaster of Lake Forest Academy in Illinois, was appointed by resident Killian last February and will take over his position on July 1.

!The Tech - Tuesday Sept. 18, 1951: My office is always open to the students." This statement by E. FRANCIS BOWDITCH represents his attitude as he takes his place as the new Dean of Students. Dean BOWDITCH is right at home here in Massachusetts. He was born at Framingham Center in 1912, and attended high school in Milton. He entered Harvard University and received his degree in 1935. That same year he was married, and now has two sons and a daughter. While still attending Harvard, he taught athletics and science at Shady Hill School here in Cambridge. After his graduation from Harvard, Dean BOWDITCH took a teaching assigmnent at Milton Academy, his high school alma mater. In 1937 he became
Assistant Dean of Freshmen at Harvard College. Two years later he was appointed head-master at Park School in Indianapolis. He assumed the same position at Lake Forest Academy in Illinois in 1941. He
remained head-master at Lake Forest until the spring of this year when he received his appointment here at the Institute. Since arriving here on July 16, Dean BOWDITCH has been busy familiarizing himself with the various aspects of student life. He has met and talked to the members of the administration and faculty, and has, acquainted himself with the general policies of the Institute. He has written to the parents of
all entering freshmen in order to obtain a true picture of each of these new men, and has sent letters outlining his policies to all students. In addition to his duties as Dean, Mr. BOWDITCH is also Chairman of the Committee on Dining and Housing here at Tech. As such he is very interested in the recent dormitory changes and their effect on the students, but until he studies them further to get a better outlook on them, he will make no comment concerning them.

!The Tech - Tuesday. September 18, 1956: Summer Sees J.T. Rule Made Dean, E.F. Bowditch New Dorm Advisor - - Two major changes in the MIT administration have been made during the past summer: E. Francis Bowditch, formerly Dean of Students, became special advisor to the President in development of a new $7,000,000 dormitory program and John T. Rule, professor of engineering graphics, was named to succeed Mr. Bowditch as Dean of Students. The dormitory program is to be undertaken as the result of an extensive study by the Committee on Student Housing, headed by Edwin D. Ryer, an alumnus of the Institute and member of the corporation. Dean Bowditch was a member of this committee. "Dean Bowditch participated actively in the work of the Ryer Committee," President Killian said. "It was his insistence on the importance of a long-term plan that led to the appointment of the committee. He is admirably qualified to undertake this new responsibility." Mr. Bowditch was appointed Dean of Students in 1951, coming from the headmastership of Lake Forest Academy in Illinois. He was graduated from Milton Academy in 1931 and from Harvard University in 1935. He then taught Latin and English and coached football at Milton Academy, was assistant dean of freshmen at Harvard and headmaster of the Parks School in Indianapolis before going to Lake Forest Academy. He is director of the Harvard Alumni Association, former chairman of the National Council of Independent Schools and a trustee of Milton Academy, Miss Hall's School, Shady Hill School and the Farm and Trades School.

!The Tech - Friday, Sept. 21, 1956: "Out of the frying pan . . ." Upon request of President Killian a comparatively new arrival to the administrative faculty of the Institute has assumed the responsibility of
Special Adviser to the President. Until now Mr. BOWDITCH had been Dean of Students. His career began at Harvard as a pre-medical student, surprisingly enough. In Sophomore year the opportunity of working at the Shady Hill School in Cambridge directed his talents toward teaching, the field in which he has worked in some form or another ever since. The teaching profession took him from Shady Hill to Milton Academy and soon afterward to the Freshmen Dean's office at Harvard. Following this second encounter with Harvard he took a position as Headmaster of the Park School for two years. His next ten years were spent as Headmaster of the Lake Forest School. While still at Lake Forest he received the request to fill the position of Dean of Students here at MIT, left vacant by the death of Dean Baker. His newest position is no cut and dry administrative office, but rather one with undefined boundaries, centralized about the problems involved in the post-war influx of additional students. One of the first changes made following his appointment last July was the replacement of the office of Freshman Dean of Students by a system of faculty advisers. The problems involved with the expansion of the MIT family created many conditions, a good number of which still lie unsolved. The purchase of Burton House and construction of Baker House left large unwieldy groups of students with housing and little else to develop individuality of the students. It is this last point that Dean BOWDITCH has made the objective of his office. As ex-officio member of the Ryer committee he energetically helped in sifting outthe ideas and gathering the facts necessary for the
committee to make its recommendations for developing the personality of the student. After the tedious process of selecting, examining, and deciding upon recommendations, the Ryer report advised a new dorm system, Student Center, a Graduate Center, a Gymnasium, and new housing for women students. Dean BOWDITCH's service to this committee did not end with the report. His position as Special Adviser to the President is now to put into effect the measures of the report. In this position Dean BOWDITCH will continue to carry out his aims of reindividualizing the educational process and educating the spirit of man along with his intellect. Despite his energetic and relentless manner of attacking the problems of
his office, his colleagues have found him, in the words of Dean Speer "a swell guy to work with and to work for."
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